Lessons learned from quality management system ISO 9001:2015 certification: practices and barrier identification from Brazilian industrial companies

Perceptions, Attitudes, and Barriers towards the Use of Central Board for Accreditation of Healthcare Institutions (CBAHI) Standards among Saudi Healthcare Providers

BACKGROUND

Quality improvement is a strategic priority for all healthcare systems. However, the engagement of healthcare providers in pursuing accreditation plays a critical role in integrating standards into routine practice. Therefore, the current study assessed the perceptions, attitudes, and barriers towards using the Central Board for Accreditation of Healthcare Institutions (CBAHI) standards among Saudi healthcare providers.

METHOD

This cross-sectional study was conducted in 2023 among a representative sample (364) of Saudi healthcare providers (both genders, aged 20-60) working at twenty governmental CBAHI-accredited hospitals in Saudi Arabia. The study participants were selected using a cluster random sampling method. Data regarding the perceptions, attitudes, and barriers toward using CBAHI standards among Saudi healthcare providers were evaluated using a validated questionnaire. Additional information regarding demographic-socioeconomic variables was obtained with an interview-based questionnaire. Statistical analysis was performed using SPSS version 28.

RESULTS

A total of 364 healthcare providers participated in the current study. Of them, 54.4% were males, and 45.6% were females. Almost half (48.6%) of the study participants held bachelor's degrees. For the variables of age group, marital status, monthly income, and years of work experience, statistically significant associations were found between males and females (p-value < 0.05). The means of overall item agreement percentage of the participating healthcare providers for perceptions and attitudes towards using CBAHI standards and attitudes towards using CBAHI standards as a tool for quality improvement were 80.1%, 76.4%, and 72.0%, respectively. The highest item agreement percentage of the participating healthcare providers regarding the barriers that inhibit the hospital from obtaining the full benefit from the CBAHI accreditation was for the inexpedient IT tools (59.6%).

CONCLUSION

The current study's results demonstrated accepted perceptions and attitudes toward using CBAHI standards among Saudi healthcare providers. In addition, the identified barriers should be alleviated to improve the quality, effectiveness, and efficiency of the hospitals in Saudi Arabia. The findings also help clarify the accreditation operating process, which may be helpful to policymakers and stakeholders in making informed decisions on integrating accreditation standards.

The Importance of Fab Labs in the Development of New Products toward Mass Customization

The idea of developing Fab Labs (Fabrication Laboratories) was originated by Neil Gershenfeld of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) Center for Bits and Atoms in 2006, where it signaled the start of a new era that is changing the world economy by breaking down the boundaries between the digital and physical worlds. The Portuguese Fab Labs are analyzed and a subsequent comparison with others European countries and in the USA was made. This comparison is based on aspects of the profile, the knowledge, the services, and the users. The survey was made by questionnaire, where the Portuguese version of it was adapted from another one disseminated at European level and in the USA, created in connection with a doctoral thesis in Italy. There are 25 active Fab Labs in Portugal, of which 16 responses were obtained and considered valid, so they represent the sample of our study. The results show that the Portuguese Fab Labs are in an embryonic phase with few associated or registered users. Portuguese Fab Labs have areas of work and investment capacity in machinery and technology similar to those of other European countries. However, in terms of turnover, there is a big difference between Portugal and some of the European countries, with American Fab Labs having completely different realities from the European ones. This work is relevant because it compares the Fab Labs of developed countries with those of Portugal. To overcome the difference in good practices existing in other countries, the Portuguese Fab Labs need: (1) better publicity, as well as more support for volunteer workers at Fab Labs, so that more ideas will appear and therefore more products; (2) the facilitation of the use of Fab Labs to have more volunteer workers, who must receive experimental courses, in order to make the best use of the available equipment; (3) evolution, from the current subtractive manufacturing to the additive manufacturing looking for innovation; (4) improved quality, ergonomics, and safety in the design of their own products; (5) and on the part of those responsible, therecognition, dissemination, and celebration of the best ideas that have turned into good products, in order to spread good practices.