Achs Recognises Outstanding Quality Improvement In Australian Healthcare

ACHS Recognises Outstanding Quality Improvement in Australian Healthcare

A hospital discharge project aimed at improving teamwork and reducing unnecessary re- admissions, an international best-practice technology and clinical practice program and an early intervention project for a renal unit are the winners of the 2009 Quality Improvement Awards, to be presented by the Australian Council on Healthcare Standards (ACHS) at its Annual Dinner in Sydney tonight.

The ACHS Quality Improvement (QI) Awards were launched in 1996 (and have been supported by Baxter Healthcare since 1998) and recognise innovative quality improvement in Health Care Performance Indicators, Clinical Excellence and Patient Safety and Non-Clinical Service Delivery.

The winner of the Health Care Performance Indicators category was Singleton
Health Service, Singleton NSW for the `No Boundaries Multi-Disciplinary
Discharge Project'.

At Singleton Health Service issues were identified concerning aged care discharge processes which had resulted in increased patient length of stay. The Health Service implemented a multidisciplinary discharge planning team to include external service providers to better coordinate discharge planning.

The outcomes included:
* decreased Length of Stay
* decreased readmission rate
* 45% reduction in 14 day readmission rate achieved
* 40% reduction in 28 day readmission rate achieved.

In the Non-clinical Service Delivery category, the winning project was Southern
Health Technology and Clinical Practice Program, from Southern Health, Centre
for Clinical Effectiveness, Clayton, Victoria.

Southern Health established a transparent, accountable and evidence-based framework for introduction of new technologies and clinical practices. The initiative was driven by global challenges related to balancing rapid advancements in technologies and limited health resources and a local acknowledgement that there were opportunities for improvement in the current system.

The Renal Unit at Liverpool Hospital, Liverpool, NSW won the Clinical Excellence
and Patient Safety category with their entry Dialysis Access Flow measurement
Early Intervention Through Early Detection.

The aim of the project was to determine the effectiveness of using online access flow measurement so that early intervention could be instituted.

All haemodialysis patients with permanent dialysis access were included in this quality project, conducted over two years. Twenty percent of 165 patients studied were found to have poor dialysis access flow.

They introduced a new procedure to regularly monitor patients' access flow
measurement that improved patient outcomes in a number of ways including:
* Early detection of poor flow indicating imminent dialysis access failure
* Avoidable insertion and utilisation of temporary dialysis catheter by 145%.

Regular and routine access flow measurement is now an integral part of the renal
service's access monitoring, surveillance and early intervention program.

Further information regarding the QI Awards may be obtained by contacting
Development Unit, ACHS, +61 2 9281 9955 or email [email protected]

Media information:
ACHS Communications Manager, Megan Taylor on 02 9281 9955 or 0416 280 826

Established in 1974, the ACHS is Australia's leading healthcare accreditation agency and is recognised by the International Society for Quality in Health Care (ISQua) for both its standards and accreditation program. Over 1050 individual hospitals and healthcare organisations are members of ACHS quality improvement programs


SOURCE: Australian Council on Healthcare Standards