A hospital-wide quality assurance programme: the Wilson model

This article examines the Wilson (1987) model and describes how it offers a more realistic framework for quality assurance (QA) in health care and how it can benefit both staff and patients. The model complements total quality management (TQM) and can incorporate audit mechanisms such as the Dynamic Standard Setting System (DySSSy; Royal College of Nursing, 1990). The importance of strategic review regarding quality and the need to pilot ways of introducing such a concept before any organization-wide implementation can take place is emphasized. In addition, the need for user-friendly QA across all services in order to strengthen the principles of TQM is stressed.