1. Quality management implementation at University
Dr. Juan Viñas Salas
Rector Lleida University
AMSE ANNUAL CONFERENCE
BARCELONA 5-7- JUNE 2008

2. The Legitimacy of Quality Assurance in Higher Education
One of the basic elements of EHEA is the quality in HE and the development of QA systems for HEIs;
The standards and guidelines for QA adopted by European ministers in Bergen in 2005;
The progress of implementation was reviewed again in London in 2007.

3. Diversity exists:
Ministers agreement in Berlin 2003: national QA
systems should include a ”system of accreditation,
certification or comparable procedures”.
The HE systems in Europe vary, maintly
for historical reasons alone:
old - new universities
public - private
- comprehensive - special HEIs
etc.

4. EHEA with the recognition of titles and studies within European Universities makes necessary to implement a Quality Assurance program to assess similarities in teaching outcomes
Medical training has health care implications that makes it specific and different to others

5. AGENCIES HIERARQUIE ENQA NATIONAL AGENCY EVALUATION
QUALITY
EVALUATION
UNIVERSITY SETTINGS

6. Evaluation Standards in Medical Education
There is a real need to:
Evaluate
Enhance
Accountability
Confront
- the methods and results of all University Higher Education in Europe for the EHEA
Quality Assurance
In Medical Education this need is worldwide
for its health care implications

7. MEDICAL SCHOOL COMPLEXITY
undergraduate medical education
postgraduate training:
Specialization
Continuous Medical Education
Research:
Basic
Applied
interaction with the clinical service

8. Types of University Settings Evaluation
Institutional Evaluation:
Governance
General organize aspects
Specific Evaluations
Quality of Teaching: - curricula
- methodology
- outputs
Health Care Quality Assurance

9. QUALITY ASSURANCE Quality Circle Q.A. focused on: Continuum of Quality
Structure
Process
Results
Continuum of Quality
Undergraduate
Postgraduate
Accreditation or improvement
Quality of:
Medical School and
Health Care System

10. Rector’s Challenges Differences between Centres and Studies
Different Staff opinions
Need of more Resources
Need of European standards and guidelines

11. Staff vision of Q.A. Evaluations
A mandatory extra-work that takes extra-time
A bureaucratic extra-work that have little positive effects of their own professional work
A rectorate office imposition because of no trust in staff and need of university marketing
A necessary complementary work for increasing quality in teaching, research and health care providing
Need of university transparency and accountability for generating society complicity and help

12. Actions to be implemented
Continuous information-education about the need of life-long learning in all professional aspects, not only technical:
Teaching
Self growing
Research
Management
Implication of Staff in the process
Implication of Students in the process
Make Staff leave the QA evaluation as a “enjoying process”

13. PITFALLS TO AVOID IN QUALITY ASSURANCE
Excess bureaucracy
Received as a “police inspection”
Excess of extra work
Few related to outcomes
Not accepted as a improvement tool
Conforming with the assessments
Non integrated in staff normal work

14. Need of University Social Implication
It is a mistake to ask for more University financing just for social reasons: we are not priorities as:
1- health care
2- social settings
3-Education non university
We must combine it with social needs for producing money
efficiency: to gain/gain
increase of general economy: I+D+I
Increased value: - quality, prestige, better health care

15. Justification of Quality Assurance
Quality assurance and quality improvement are two necessary objectives that all organization must assume and work towards it. There is no other option.
Personal ethics. To work with the maximal quality as possible is a challenge that every human being must have as a value. It is one of the different items that help one to be happy in his/here own life. The selfish increases if one works with quality.
Social ethics. There is a need of security in health care for every citizen

16. The audit criteria must be based on European standards
and guidelines:
- the more detailed criteria can be set in consultation with
the HEIs, and they are public
- the audit process involves partly a peer review, but
includes also student and labour market representatives;
the audit report must be published, and be public;
It is worthwhile that the Quality agency gives a
quality certificate to the HEI that has passed the criteria

17. The leadership and governance of each HEI
plays an important role in the implementation of its
QA system. (But still every university already has
’quality’.)
A system that is based on a quality culture that
embraces everybody in the institution.
The leadership has to be the initiator of the strategic
quality improvement in the institution, and its role is
further enhanced in the dissemination of good practices
through national and international networks.

18. Really exists a ”Common European language”
in what is quality terminology in different cultural
and historical contexts and its interpretation?
- can the standards be applied consistently?
- how about legal documents?
ENQA Workshop on ’Language of the European
Quality Assurance’, in June 2006

19. Different approaches for Q.A. Assessment
Each Medical School, according with the HEI can decide itself which type of quality system it is following (ISO, EFQM, etc.) or developed their own that fits best their very strategy and tasks;
Every Medical School should be willing to go through the audit. Their motivation based largely on enhanced national and international competitiveness and visibility.
Each audit based on a specific contract between the Medical School and the Agency, and thus must not been seen as limiting its the autonomy.

20. quality/quality assurance
Higher education institution (HEI)
HEI support institution (state)
providing optimized programmes
ensuring accountability
procuring effectivity/efficiency
inducing optimal programmes
demanding accountability
checking effectivity/efficiency
quality/quality assurance
Students
Society (e.g., labour market)
guaranteed quality
transparent information
(external) acceptance
guaranteed quality
transparent information
matching needs

21. The way ahead:
Internal quality assurance processes need to be sufficiently financed on a continuous basis
decisions about course and program design, monitoring and approval should be informed with employers’ views - Health care Responsibles -.
quality management bodies inside the HEIs should involve students on a more systematic basis
involvement of international reviewers has to be financially supported by the government

22. Summary
Medical School is different as teaching implies health care system and patient’s care; its cost is very high.
Many people implicated in medical students training are not linked with University Staff: Hospital and Primary Care physicians, nurses and other Health Care Professionals, etc.
Q.A. of Medical Schools must be closely related to results, to outcomes
There are different specific models of Q.A. evaluation of Medical Schools. ENQA should agree a common European Standard Model.

23. Summary
Universities must give high autonomy governance to Medical Schools
Health Care providers must be linked with Medical School responsibles
Universities Quality Assurance Offices must help medical Dean’s Office work

24. Thank you very much