STRUCTURAL ORGANIZATION AND ITS CONTRIBUTION TO QUALITY IN HOSPITAL CARE

Abstract

Introduction: Hospital organizations are characterized by their structural and organizational complexity, requiring adequate physical standards and efficient management to guarantee the quality of care. Faced with a scarcity of material and financial resources and a growing demand for qualified health services, structural organization presents itself as a fundamental strategy for optimizing processes and improving care, even without the need for large investments. Objective: To identify, based on the literature, how the structural organization of hospital care contributes to the quality of care provided to the user. Methodology: This is an integrative literature review of articles published in Portuguese-language journals between 2017 and 2022. Results: A total of 1,830 articles were found and identified. Of these, 93 were excluded due to duplication, and 35 were selected after reading the titles and abstracts, resulting in the exclusion of 1,795. After analyzing the selected studies, 29 were excluded for not containing information relevant to this work, leaving a final sample of six studies used for this article. The analysis was performed using a synoptic table, with a descriptive synthesis of the results, encompassing different methodological designs, mostly published between 2021 and 2022. Conclusion: It is concluded that the structural organization of physical and tangible resources, combined with the training of professionals, significantly contributes to the quality of hospital care. The scarcity of resources constitutes a significant barrier, which can compromise patient safety and the effectiveness of care when not associated with the appropriate use and technical knowledge of professionals.