Biomaterial Database

Social, economic, and political forces in quality assurance. 1985

M H Schoen

Licensure and accreditation, established primarily to protect the existing profession, have been incorrectly assumed to be effective agents for quality assurance. Although dentistry, being less institutionalized than medicine, has had less pressure for quality assurance, both increasing third party payment for care and sophistication of population have led to the development of assessment and assurance mechanisms. At present, these are used more for cost containment than quality assurance, but considerations for the protection of the oral health of the public are growing.

UI	MeSH Term	Description	Entries
D008005	Licensure, Dental	The granting of a license to practice dentistry.	Dental Licensure,Dental Licensures,Licensures, Dental
D011057	Politics	Activities concerned with governmental policies, functions, etc.	Political Activity,Conservatism,Decentralization,Liberalism,Political Factors,Activities, Political,Activity, Political,Factor, Political,Factors, Political,Political Activities,Political Factor
D011785	Quality Assurance, Health Care	Activities and programs intended to assure or improve the quality of care in either a defined medical setting or a program. The concept includes the assessment or evaluation of the quality of care; identification of problems or shortcomings in the delivery of care; designing activities to overcome these deficiencies; and follow-up monitoring to ensure effectiveness of corrective steps.	Quality Assessment, Health Care,Health Care Quality Assessment,Health Care Quality Assurance,Healthcare Quality Assessment,Healthcare Quality Assurance,Quality Assessment, Healthcare,Quality Assurance, Healthcare,Assessment, Healthcare Quality,Assessments, Healthcare Quality,Assurance, Healthcare Quality,Assurances, Healthcare Quality,Healthcare Quality Assessments,Healthcare Quality Assurances,Quality Assessments, Healthcare,Quality Assurances, Healthcare
D003256	Community Participation	Involvement of members of the community in the affairs of that community.	Community Action,Consumer Involvement,Consumer Participation,Community Involvement,Public Participation,Action, Community,Actions, Community,Community Actions,Community Involvements,Consumer Involvements,Involvement, Community,Involvement, Consumer,Involvements, Community,Participation, Community,Participation, Consumer,Participation, Public
D003363	Cost Control	The containment, regulation, or restraint of costs. Costs are said to be contained when the value of resources committed to an activity is not considered excessive. This determination is frequently subjective and dependent upon the specific geographic area of the activity being measured. (From Dictionary of Health Services Management, 2d ed)	Cost Containment,Containment, Cost,Containments, Cost,Control, Cost,Controls, Cost,Cost Containments,Cost Controls
D003365	Costs and Cost Analysis	Absolute, comparative, or differential costs pertaining to services, institutions, resources, etc., or the analysis and study of these costs.	Affordability,Analysis, Cost,Cost,Cost Analysis,Cost Comparison,Cost Measures,Cost-Minimization Analysis,Costs and Cost Analyses,Costs, Cost Analysis,Pricing,Affordabilities,Analyses, Cost,Analyses, Cost-Minimization,Analysis, Cost-Minimization,Comparison, Cost,Comparisons, Cost,Cost Analyses,Cost Comparisons,Cost Measure,Cost Minimization Analysis,Cost, Cost Analysis,Cost-Minimization Analyses,Costs,Measure, Cost,Measures, Cost
D003729	Dental Care	The total of dental diagnostic, preventive, and restorative services provided to meet the needs of a patient (from Illustrated Dictionary of Dentistry, 1982).	Care, Dental
D003796	Dental Service, Hospital	Hospital department providing dental care.	Hospital Dental Service,Service, Hospital Dental,Dental Services, Hospital,Hospital Dental Services,Services, Hospital Dental
D006801	Humans	Members of the species Homo sapiens.	Homo sapiens,Man (Taxonomy),Human,Man, Modern,Modern Man
D000068	Accreditation	Certification as complying with a standard set by non-governmental organizations, applied for by institutions, programs, and facilities on a voluntary basis.	Accreditations