Chinese public hospitals’ practices and strategy of total quality management in the COVID-19 pandemic: A field research

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Abstract

Implementing the 6S approach in healthcare can drive continual improvement in efficiency, safety, and productivity despite hurdles (Wang & Liu, 2023). This study analyzed three hospitals, two of which implemented 6S management during the 2019 coronavirus pandemic and one during a non-pandemic period. Surveys conducted before and after the implementation of 6S measured improvements in healthcare quality, economic variables, and hospital satisfaction. The data was analyzed using Statistical Package for the Social Sciences (SPSS) 21.0, and statistical significance was attributed to p-values below 0.05. The use of 6S management, which is a part of total quality management (TQM) methods, resulted in systematic improvements in efficiency, organization, cleanliness, and standardization, hence enhancing the quality of service in Chinese public hospitals. It had a substantial positive impact on healthcare quality, economic metrics, and satisfaction across different levels of hospitals. The use of 6S management in Chinese public hospitals has a beneficial impact and is capable of mitigating the negative consequences of an epidemic. Nevertheless, the implementation of this approach requires additional research and customized tactics specifically designed for hospital settings to improve quality, effectiveness, and patient contentment.

Keywords: TQM, Chinese Public Hospitals, New-Coronary-Pneumonia Pandemic, 6S Management

Authors’ individual contribution: Conceptualization — Y.Z.; Methodology — Y.L. and S.T.; Formal Analysis — S.T and D.P.; Investigation —Y.L.; Writing — Original Draft — Y.Z. and Y.L.; Writing — Review & Editing — K.A.; Visualization — D.P. and K.A.; Supervision — Y.L.

Declaration of conflicting interests: The Authors declare that there is no conflict of interest.

JEL Classification: D12, I10, I11

Received: 28.07.2024
Revised: 23.10.2024; 26.11.2024; 12.06.2025
Accepted: 09.07.2025
Published online: 11.07.2025

How to cite this paper: Zhang, Y., Liu, Y., Triwannakij, S., Pimchangthong, D., & Anwar, K. (2025). Chinese public hospitals’ practices and strategy of total quality management in the COVID-19 pandemic: A field research. Corporate & Business Strategy Review, 6(3), 128–137. https://doi.org/10.22495/cbsrv6i3art12