Quality Assurance and Quality Improvement in the Labor and Delivery Setting

Quality assurance (QA) is the maintenance of a desired level of quality, whereas quality improvement (QI) is the continuous process of creating systems to make things better. Implementation science promotes the systematic uptake of best practices. Bundles are a structured list of best practices whereas toolkits provide the necessary details, rationale, and implementation materials, such as sample policies and protocols. Metrics that can guide care on the labor and delivery (L&D) floor may be related to team structure (obstetric, multidisciplinary, anesthetic), processes (patient monitoring, team effects), and outcomes (postpartum hemorrhage, venous thromboembolism). Multiple anesthetic quality metrics have been proposed, including the mode of anesthesia for cesarean delivery.