Page 14 - NATIONAL POLICY QUALITY IN HEALTHCARE: Bridging Silos, Accelerating Improvements 2022-2026

National Policy for Quality in Healthcare
Bridging Silos, Accelerating Improvements

Preface

Evolution in the field of healthcare quality since the publication of the MOH’s Strategic
Plan for Quality in Health in 1998, has necessitated its revision into a much-awaited new national
policy - the National Policy for Quality in Healthcare (NPQH), guided by principles outlined in
the WHO’s approach to National Quality Policy and Strategy (NQPS).
Responding to this need, the Institute for Health Systems Research (IHSR) as the
Secretariat for Quality Assurance/Quality Improvement Programme in the MOH and the WHO
Collaborating Centre for Quality Improvement, engaged an international consultant through
WHO Office, Dr Bruce Agins, to assist in the development of the NPQH. His expertise and
insights indeed proved to be invaluable in the formulation of the Malaysian NPQH. Concurrently,
the requisite formation of a Technical Working Group (TWG) using an existing QA Technical
Committee platform was entrusted with the myriad challenging tasks involved in formulating
the NPQH document.

January 2019 marked the beginning of a meticulously planned endeavour. The WHO
Office Malaysia provided critical support for a 2-week workshop in July 2019, for the second
engagement with the Consultant, which was officiated by the DDG (Research & Technical
Support) with the WHO Representatives in attendance, at the opening ceremony.
The Technical Working Group conducted a situational analysis, which involved a
review of historical and current information as well as the collation of new data utilising
a”mixed methods” approach with the requisite material being obtained from a diverse range
of sources encompassing existing quality related documents, opinions of healthcare providers
and the people of Malaysia. A subsequent series of engagement sessions with the relevant
key stakeholders from multiple health sectors, including the public, was organised to attain
consensus on priorities areas and further build on the draft for the new policy.

After the third briefing session with the Consultant in mid-February 2020 on the latest
update progress, the Secretariat led the way in the challenging task of preparing the policy
draft, together with the TWG. Findings, contents, as well as progress updates for the NPQH
development were presented to the National QA Committee and the National Steering Committee
on Innovation, for further refinements of the policy. The contents of this new policy were also
presented at the DG Special Meeting (Mesyuarat KPK Khas) to obtain input from the top policy-
making leadership at both Ministry and State levels.

The NPQH would not have materialised without the concerted efforts and support of
the numerous quality champions and stakeholders. It is hoped that this effort will be translated
into a systematic and coherent action plan to ensure that the vision for quality of the Ministry of
Health is achieved, so that all Malaysians will have access to high quality of health care services.

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