Reducing the incidence and morbidity of pressure ulcers remains a leading national priority in patient safety. However, the optimal strategy for a hospital or health system to address this safety goal is not straightforward given the number and complexity of available solutions. Leveraging techniques from systems engineering, such as the quality function deployment process, may provide a transparent and objective way to address this challenge. A detailed and practical application of quality function deployment is presented that demonstrates the value of applying engineering practices for prioritizing solutions for pressures ulcers specifically and can easily be adapted to other conditions.
Keywords: health care procurement; high-reliability operations; pressure ulcers; systems engineering.