Access a range of articles and resources written by clinical governance experts and search our carefully curated list of safety and quality journal articles and reports.
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In response to quality challenges highlighted by the Covid-19 pandemic, the Institute for Quality Improvement (IHI) has looked at how to increase the adoption of effective quality improvement (QI) practices in nursing homes in the United States. Despite the differences in regulatory requirements between countries, the findings are relevant for all involved with aged care: providers, managers, staff, policymakers and advisers.
Technological advances have opened new possibilities for improving patient safety. Using technology to digitize healthcare processes has the potential to increase standardisation and efficiency of clinical workflows, and to reduce errors and cost across all healthcare settings. However, if technological approaches are designed or implemented poorly, the burden on care providers can increase.
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With the publication of STAR ratings, Australian aged care enters a new era of quality measurement and public reporting. What can we learn from other countries using similar systems about the potential for published ratings to effect improvement?
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Handy template on the Department of Health and Aged Care website for documenting standard procedures.
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Older adults report Quality of Life (QoL) as a central goal for aged care, with 93% of Australians agreeing that it should be mandatory for providers to publicly report on QoL measures. Quality of life is also considered by older Australians as a valuable indicator for comparing aged care services. But it’s still not routinely measured and reported in clinical governance datasets.
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The Code of Conduct for Aged Care describes the behaviour expected of aged care providers, their governing persons (e.g. board members and Chief Executive Officers) and aged care workers. The Code gives the Aged Care Quality and Safety Commission (the Commission) the power to deal with behaviour that is not consistent with the Code.
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Governing bodies play a critical role in aged care – they set the direction for, and culture of, the organisation, directly influencing the safety and quality of care provided to consumers.
It has been reported that complaints relating to registered health practitioners increased over the 2021/2022 financial year. Further (and separately), in aged care, there was a total of 2,767 complaints made in the first quarter of 2022 and 2,642 complaints in the second quarter. Both these figures had also trended upwards compared with the corresponding numbers in 2021 (with 2,313 in the first quarter of 2021 and 2,261 in the second quarter).
The term clinical governance was first coined in the context of the United Kingdom’s National Health Service - specifically, in a white paper endorsed by then Prime Minister Tony Blair entitled ‘The new NHS: modern, dependable.’ Now, 25 years later – where are we at?
The Royal Commission into Aged Care Quality and Safety (Royal Commission) recommended that every approved provider of aged care (whether delivering personal or clinical care) adopts a digital care management system, including an electronic medication management system, and that this should be an ‘immediate focus’ (Recommendation 68 of the Final Report).
