Causal structure of the EFQM excellence model among healthcare sector: a case study in Iran

Abstract

This paper aims to find the causal structure among the criteria of European Foundation for Quality Management (EFQM) excellence model in the organisations of the healthcare sector to prioritise improvement actions for excellence in hospitals. In this regard, a framework of relations among the criteria of EFQM model is developed by theoretical studies and then, this framework is tested based on the results of self-evaluations performed in Iran public hospitals using the Structural Equation Modelling statistical technique. The required data have been collected from 40 public hospitals from 30 provinces and more than 1200 senior and middle managers of clinical departments of the Iran healthcare sector. The acquired scores in each hospital were categorised under 9 criteria, 32 sub-criterion and almost 300 guidance points of the EFQM model. Results show that the proposed framework is consistent with the experimental data and thus, it seems to properly explain the relations among the criteria of the EFQM model in the healthcare sector. The findings of this research may be of interest to both the academic and the professional health systems in the world, especially those with a governmental structure.