Authors

Unknown

Document Type

Article

Abstract

To ensure a future of improved Indian Heath Services (IHS), better health for American Indians and Alaskan Natives, and growing self-determination for the government of federally recognized tribes, the Director of the Indian Health Service launched Quality Management (QM) in the late summer of 1989. The QM is an agency-wide effort to provide responsible and efficient management of IHS resources. The QM is built on past accomplishments, making immediate corrections, encouraging innovation in management systems, and fostering in all IHS employees a commitment to professionalism, accountability, and continuous improvements. The IHS forged a process to achieve both ongoing solutions to immediate problems and to install a new management culture in the agency. Priority has been given to problems in which some immediate progress is possible. Six QM targets and special work groups were formed, and this report reports the work on their charge. The first part of this status report summarizes the ongoing activities of the work groups and their progress to date. The second part of the report briefly discusses the completed assessment of the IHS management systems. The third portion of the report is devoted to some of the IHS strategic thinking in managing the change now underway in the organization. The final section of this report discusses the progress in communications.

Publication Date

1990

Publisher

Indian Health Service, Staff Office of Planning, Evaluation and Research, Rockville, MD 20857.

COinS