A National Quality Improvement Program on Ultrasound Department in China: A Controlled Cohort Study of 1297 Public Hospitals

Providing high-quality medical services is of great importance in the imaging department, as there is a growing focus on personal health, and high-quality services can lead to improved patient outcomes. Many quality improvement (QI) programs with good guidance and fine measurement for improvement have been reported to be effective. In order to improve the quality of ultrasound departments in China, we conducted this study of a national quality improvement program. A total of 1297 public hospitals were included in this QI program on ultrasound departments in China from 2017 to 2019. The effect of this QI program was investigated, and potential factors, including hospital level and local economic development, were considered. The outcome indicators, the positive rate and diagnostic accuracy, were improved significantly between the two phases (positive rate, 2017 vs. 2019: 66.21% vs. 73.91%, p < 0.001; diagnostic accuracy, 2017 vs. 2019: 85.37% vs. 89.74%; p < 0.001). Additionally, they were improved in secondary and tertiary hospitals, with the improvement in secondary hospitals being greater. Notably, the enhancement of diagnostic accuracy in low-GDP provinces was almost 20%, which was more significant than the enhancement in high-GDP provinces. However, the important structural indicator, the doctor-to-patient ratio, decreased from 1.05:10,000 to 0.96:10,000 (p = 0.026). This study suggests that the national ultrasound QI program improved the outcome indicators, with secondary-level hospitals improving more than tertiary hospitals and low-GDP provinces improving more than high-GDP regions. Additionally, as there is a growing need for ultrasound examinations, more ultrasound doctors are needed in China.