Quality improvement in hospital: How knowledge and attitude affect job performance across different professional groups

Abstract

Objective: Improving the performance of healthcare organizations is a major concern within health systems. This study aims to explore the relationship between hospital staff’s knowledge and attitudes about continuous quality improvement (CQI) and their perceived job performance while determining if professional groups moderate this relationship.
Methods: A total of 250 questionnaires were distributed among three main job groups at a public hospital in Iran. Statistical analysis included variance-based structural equation modeling and Pearson correlation coefficients.
Results: Of the 250 distributed questionnaires, 196 were returned (response rate: 78%). The path coefficient between staff knowledge and performance was 0.390 higher in the physician group than in the non-physician group, and 0.207 higher in the administrative-financial group. The path coefficient for the non-physician group was 0.120 higher than that of the administrativefinancial group. For staff attitudes and performance, the path coefficient was 0.160 higher in the physician group than in the non-physician group, and 0.090 higher than in the administrative-financial group. The administrative-financial group had a 0.070 higher path coefficient than the non-physician group.
Conclusions: The study indicates positive relationships between hospital employees’ knowledge and attitudes about quality improvement and their job performance. These relationships were not significantly moderated by professional groups.