The conference of "Quality in Health Care" with the theme of "Achieving Quality in Health Care Services and Outcomes" deals with quality in health care; more specifically the role of quality in the enhancement of care for patients, the improvement of patient safety and satisfaction, and organizational efficiency. Improving the quality of health care services and outcomes is a subject of major interest to regional governments, the public, and to the global community. Recent statistics on the quality of health care in the United States published by the "Remaking American Medicine" (http://www.ramcampaign.org/pages/quality_stats.htm) reveal the following striking findings: - Medical errors kill more people per year than breast cancer, AIDS or road traffic injuries; - Doctors provide appropriate preventive care only 50% of the time, effective chronic care 60% of the time, and evidence-based acute care only 70% of the time; - Nearly $400 billion - almost one-third of the total spent on health care each year - is wasted on poor quality health care. In Kuwait's national midrange plan 2010-2014 and Tony Blair's Kuwait Vision 2030s report, evidence abounds for the need to improve the quality of health care: - Increase in the number of Kuwaiti nationals seeking medical care abroad; - The need for improving the quality of health care services; - The need to focus on public health, preventive care, and the improvement of healthy lifestyle habits to avert serious illnesses; - Kuwait lags international standards on the management of obesity and chronic diseases. Kuwait and the Gulf in general have launched plans and initiatives to improve the quality of health care services and outcome; especially in public hospitals and clinics. These have focused on engaging the private sector. Through the sessions of the Conference, we seek to find answers to the following questions: 1.How can the quality concepts, models, and programs used to improve the quality of health care? 2.What kind of metrics should be used to assess the quality in health care? 3.How can patient experience and engagement be attained and measured? 4.Has the private sector experienced true improvements in all aspects of quality and safety? 5.How may the interest of patients be protected against the disequilibrium of information and knowledge between the service provider and customer? Can quality concepts and tools help? 6.Does the concept of quality have the same meaning in public and private institutions? 7.What are the challenges facing public providers in their quest to improve health care quality? How may these challenges be addressed in practical terms? 8.What is the role of accreditation in improving quality of health care? How can the interest of the patient be protected against the business nature of the relationship between accreditation bodies and service providers? Whatever role you assume in the health care sector, we hope that your participation enriches your experience and that of others; providing you with answers to some of your questions and, most importantly, allowing all attendees to be exposed to different perspectives on the concept and application of quality in health care. We look forward to your active participation in the conference of "Quality in Health Care - Achieving Quality in Health Care Services and Outcomes."

• published: 15 Sep 2011
• views: 551