[Clinical management in nutrition units]

Introduction: total quality management (TQM) is an element of excellence in the practice of clinical nutrition that is less recognized than others such as continuous training or research. Objective: to discuss the foundations of quality management tools such as TQM or continuous quality improvement, to describe major achievements in this field in nutrition units, and to define the main challenges for the future. Results: in recent years, at least 9 clinical nutrition units have implemented TQM with quality certification by an external agency, in most cases AENOR and in accordance with the ISO 9001 standard. This has meant reflecting on the activities carried out by the units in order to meet user expectations, to document said activities, to ensure a better understanding of the organization, and to define the responsibilities of all staff, avoiding errors and redundant activities, with the result of improved time management and resources. Conclusions: TQM contributes to excellence in clinical nutrition because it represents a useful tool to improve organization and results in an efficient way. Although much progress has been made, there still remains a lot of work to be done in terms of developing processes, indicators, standards, and especially the coding of disease related malnutrition (DRM), due to its very important impact on patient care.