Quality improvement process: the foundation for excellence in health care.

The health care industry has come under increasing pressure to define, measure and improve the quality of health care services delivered. To set the framework for this discussion, the quality philosophies espoused by the leading experts from the industrial sector, namely, Crosby, Deming and Juran are presented. The differences as well as common themes presented by these experts are discussed. This paper reviews the role of management in a quality improvement process that results in the development of a successful organization.