Beheshtinia Mohammad Ali, Fathi Masood, Ghobakhloo Morteza, Mubarak Muhammad Faraz
Industrial Engineering Department, Faculty of Engineering, Semnan University, Iran.
Division of Intelligent Production Systems, School of Engineering Science, University of Skövde, Sweden.
Health Serv Insights. 2025 Apr 11;18:11786329251331311. doi: 10.1177/11786329251331311. eCollection 2025.
This research aims to enhance the quality of hospital services by utilizing Quality Function Deployment (QFD) with a novel Multi-Dimensional House of Quality (MD-HOQ) approach. This method integrates Service Quality (SERVQUAL) analysis and considers resource constraints, such as financial and workforce limitations, to select and prioritize technical requirements effectively.
The proposed MD-HOQ approach was applied to a private hospital in Tehran, Iran. Data were gathered from a sample of 8 experts and a sample of 386 patients, using 2 in-depth interviews and 4 questionnaires. The process included identifying hospital sections and determining their importance using the Analytic Hierarchy Process. Patients' needs in each section were then identified and weighted through SERVQUAL analysis. Subsequently, technical requirements to meet these needs were listed and weighted using MD-HOQ. A mathematical model was employed to determine the optimal set of technical requirements under resource constraints.
Application of the MD-HOQ approach resulted in the identification of 50 patient needs across 5 hospital sections. Additionally, 40 technical requirements were identified. The highest implementation priorities were assigned to "training practitioners and nurses," "improving the staff's sense of responsibility," and "using experienced specialists, physicians, and surgeons."
The integrated QFD approach, utilizing MD-HOQ and SERVQUAL analysis, provides a comprehensive framework for hospital managers to prioritize technical requirements effectively. By considering resource constraints and the gap between patient expectations and perceptions, this method ensures that resources are allocated to the most impactful technical requirements, leading to improved patient satisfaction and better overall hospital service quality. This approach not only enhances the quality of hospital services but also ensures efficient utilization of resources, ultimately benefiting patient satisfaction.
本研究旨在通过采用一种新颖的多维质量屋（MD-HOQ）方法的质量功能展开（QFD）来提高医院服务质量。该方法整合了服务质量（SERVQUAL）分析，并考虑了财务和劳动力限制等资源约束，以有效地选择技术要求并确定其优先级。
将所提出的MD-HOQ方法应用于伊朗德黑兰的一家私立医院。通过2次深度访谈和4份问卷，从8名专家样本和386名患者样本中收集数据。该过程包括识别医院科室，并使用层次分析法确定其重要性。然后通过SERVQUAL分析确定每个科室患者的需求并进行加权。随后，列出满足这些需求的技术要求并使用MD-HOQ进行加权。采用数学模型来确定资源约束下的最佳技术要求集。
MD-HOQ方法的应用导致在5个医院科室中识别出50项患者需求。此外，还识别出40项技术要求。最高实施优先级被分配给“培训从业者和护士”、“提高员工的责任感”以及“使用经验丰富的专科医生、内科医生和外科医生”。
利用MD-HOQ和SERVQUAL分析的综合QFD方法为医院管理人员有效确定技术要求的优先级提供了一个全面的框架。通过考虑资源约束以及患者期望与感知之间的差距，该方法确保将资源分配到最具影响力的技术要求上，从而提高患者满意度并改善整体医院服务质量。这种方法不仅提高了医院服务质量，还确保了资源的有效利用，最终使患者满意度受益。
