The possibility is high that you will be hearing more about Triple Aim as hospitals adopt this approach to quality improvement. The Triple Aim is a framework developed by the Institute for Healthcare Improvement (IHI) that describes an approach to optimizing health system performance.
It is IHI’s belief that new designs must be developed to simultaneously pursue three dimensions, which it calls the Triple Aim:
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improving the patient experience of care (including quality and satisfaction);
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improving the health of populations;
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reducing the per capita cost of healthcare.
In most healthcare settings today, no one is accountable for all three dimensions of the Triple Aim, IHI notes.
“Because the IHI Triple Aim entails ambitious improvement at all levels of the system, we advocate a systematic approach to change,” IHI writes. “Based on six phases of pilot testing with over 100 organizations around the world, IHI recommends a change process that includes identification of target populations, definition of system aims and measures, development of a portfolio of project work that is sufficiently strong to move system-level results, and rapid testing and scale up that is adapted to local needs and conditions.” More information about IHI’s Triple Aim is available online at http://tinyurl.com/ozb49nd.
