PHSC 457: Total Quality Management

Description

COURSE OVERVIEW

Universal health coverage will be achieved when medical products  reach patients with their safety, identity, strength, quality, and purity intact. Standards for procurement    should be enforced  and  adhered to by all in the supply chain industry to ensure  availability of quality pharmaceutical products. Instituting the Total Quality Management concept   in the pharmaceutical supply chain process will ensure that each stage of the customer supplier chain is addressed.

Total quality management (TQM) is a customer-oriented process that aims for continuous improvement in business operations. [Total quality management is an approach that is centered on quality in the entire organization and is focused on three components. The first of these include control, job management, defined processes and performance criteria, and record-keeping. The second focus is on performing specific tasks and requires competence, knowledge, skills, and experience. Finally,  an organizational culture that supports a quality environment is essential. All employees in the organization must have high levels of integrity, confidence, and team spirit. This helps to create strong relationships and keeps everyone motivated. 

Hence TQM approach requires an ongoing effort by everyone in an organization need to be involved and must  ensure that organizational goals meet and exceed the standards set for quality control This course is to ensure that students appreciate how all employees, and their work must align to common goals of improving product or service quality, showing continuous enhancement and improvement through continuous feedback. Quality in the pharmaceutical sector is paramount, as quality defects can have devasting consequences on the health and wellbeing of humans and society.

This course therefore aims to introduce students to the fundamentals of quality management in organizations with a special focus on how to plan for, manage, and maintain high levels of quality in pharmaceutical, health and medical organizations.

COURSE OBJECTIVES

The objectives of this course are to:

• Introduce students the antecedents and history of total quality management.  
• Enable students to understand the principles of total quality management (planning, doing, checking and acting). 
• Enable students to understand the phases of total quality management. 
• Introduce students to the challenges and constraints to total quality management. 
• Introduce students to tools and techniques for total quality management including PDCA cycle, process management, statistical process control, failure analysis. 

LEARNING OUTCOMES

On completion of the Total Quality Management course the students should be able to:

1.  Understand the concept of Total Quality management 
2. Demonstrate understanding of and appreciate the principles of  Total quality management   
3.  The steps and phases of Total quality management should be well understood
4.  Identify and classify the barriers of Total quality Management