In radiology quality management, which activity is primarily about verifying that products meet specifications after production?

• A. Quality Control
• B. Quality Assurance
• C. Quality Improvement
• D. Audit

Answer: (A)

Verifying that products meet specifications after they’re produced is the work of quality control. QC is about checking the actual outputs to ensure they conform to defined standards—testing images, checking calibration, ensuring results meet tolerances, and catching defects once production has occurred. It’s the detective side of quality, focusing on conformance of the finished product.

Quality assurance, by contrast, is about preventing defects by designing and implementing proper processes and procedures from the start. Quality improvement looks at making ongoing enhancements to processes to raise overall performance. An audit is an independent review of whether the quality system and its procedures are being followed.