ABSTRACT
This chapter begins with a discussion of the importance of clarifying the mission of the radiology department. It provides four case studies of total quality management (TQM) problem solving, based on actual experiences in radiology departments. The four examples are patient waiting time, report turnaround time, patient access, and missed revenues. These examples are intended to assist the reader in further understanding the TQM approach to continuous quality improvement. In evaluating patient complaints, a large medical center with a sizable outpatient clinic found that the most frequent complaint on patient satisfaction surveys was excessive waiting time. An opportunity to improve patient waiting time exists in the XYZ Radiology Department, beginning with the time the patient arrives in the department and ending with the time the patient is dismissed. Following training in flowcharting, the process of a fictional average patient passing through the department to obtain a radiograph was charted.
