The concept of Quality Assurance was implemented among academic staff in the Faculty of Medicine in 1993. It was the first program instituted in Thailand to assure and improve the quality of teaching and learning, the quality of hospital services and the accountability of management. In 1995, the Faculty Quality Assurance Committee announced quality assurance policies in aspects of:

1. Teaching and Learning
• organize student learning activities according to curriculum objectives
• continous staff development in medical and professional education
• teaching and learning media developments
• eliable and valid evaluation of medical students' education
2. Research
• systematic research team development
• set standard for quality health care and patient record system
• responsibility for quality and ethical research
3. Hospital services
• increase the efficiency of out-patient, in-patient and emergency-patient services.

There were five Quality Assurance progress report meetings on the following themes:

• December 16, 1994, under- and post-graduate education, methods of evaluation by students and peers to assure quality of staff.
• March 31,1995, medical care services, presentation of methods for monitoring and improving patient care, such as setting OPD service time, auditing medical records and OPD cards.
• December 15,1995, quality management accountability presented by the administrative team, presentation by department chairpersons on their functions: teaching and learning, services and academic activities.
• March 29, 1996, quality assurance in the Pharmacy and Nursing Services Divisions. QA measures in the Pharmacy division were aimed at increasing staff development and patient satisfaction by monitoring patient waiting time, medication errors, quality of pharmaceutical production and inventory control. Nursing Services Division established a QA Committee and Ward QA Team to ensure effective and efficient utilization of costly resources and to assure high quality of care. They validated more than 20 volumes of nursing standards, reviewed clinical procedure manuals and carried out the monitoring of 6 patient outcome indicators. Those indicators consisted of medication administration errors, patient falls, unplanned discharge patients, bedsores or pressure ulcers, nosocomial infections, etc.
• May 24,1996, improve medical records for teaching, services and research by auditing the completeness and accuracy of records in each department.
• August 30,1996, staff and academic development, presentation of the results of a seminar on QA in teaching and learning held at Haad Kaew Resort on April 18-19. The academic staff from all departments agreed upon guidelines, standards, check-lists and indicators to evaluate, monitor and develop the quality of input(students/ teachers), process (curriculum,extra-curriculur activity,media, etc.) and products (graduates).

New staff development guidelines:

• All new staff should train or study abroad (for at least 1 year) within 3 years of hire date.
• All new staff must receive training in Medical Education and Research Methodology.
• All new staff should receive training for advising medical students and be good ethical models.
• Senior staff or department chairpersons will advise new staff of good practice and departmental and faculty policies.

The Faculty will provide sufficient support to staff so that they will not have to earn any outside income and are able to work full time.