Collaborative Quality Improvement in Neonatal Intensive Care Units

Despite advancements in neonatal care technologies, there remain significant differences in practices and outcomes among neonatal intensive care units.To address this, Collaborative Quality Improvement efforts are actively being conducted in various networks, with quality improvement driven by the collective experiences and databases of participating institutions.This process involves utilizing teamwork and quality improvement tools, following a 10-step procedure for planning and execution.In Korea, quality improvement activities were initially carried out at the individual hospital level.The Korean Neonatal Network began network-based quality improvement activities on four key topics in five hospitals, and the initiative has since expanded to 21 hospitals, with continuous improvement efforts ongoing.The activities follow the Plan-Do-Study-Act (PDSA) cycle, involving repeated planning, execution, analysis, and action.With network-based support, objective comparisons, benchmarking, education, and research are actively pursued.These efforts are expected to make a significant contribution to improving the quality of neonatal care in Korea.