Understanding Clinical Governance and Quality Assurance


Book Description

This book enables healthcare professionals to make clinical governance a reality at all levels of a health care organisation. It covers techniques and approaches to support the successful implementation of Clinical Governance, including evidence-based practice, integrated care pathways, clinical risk management and other essential skills such as project management, writing a strategy and facilitating groups. Each chapter is supported with examples of how the theory works in practice.




An Introduction to Clinical Governance and Patient Safety


Book Description

Clinical Governance is integral to healthcare and all doctors must have an understanding of both basic principles, and how to apply them in daily practice. Within the Clinical Governance framework, patient safety is the top priority for all healthcare organisations, with the prevention of avoidable harm a key goal. Traditionally medical training has concentrated on the acquisition of knowledge and skills related to diagnostic intervention and therapeutic procedures. The need to focus on non-technical aspects of clinical practice, including communication and team working, is now evident; ensuring tomorrow's staff are competent to function effectively in any healthcare facility. This book provides a guide to how healthcare systems work; their structure, regulation and inspection, and key areas including risk management, resource effectiveness and wider aspects of knowledge management. Changing curricula at undergraduate level reflect this, but post-graduate training is lagging behind and does not always equip trainees appropriately for a hectic clinical environment. An Introduction to Clinical Governance and Patient Safety presents a simple overview of clinical governance in context, highlighting important principles required to function effectively in a pressurised healthcare environment. It is presented in short sections based on the original seven pillars of clinical governance. These have been expanded to include the fundamental principles of systems, team working, leadership, accountability, and ownership in healthcare, with examples from everyday practice. This format is designed to facilitate use as a 'pocket guide' which can be dipped into during the working day, as well as for general reading. Examples from all branches of medicine are presented to facilitate understanding. Contributors are taken from a broad base - from junior doctors to internationally recognised experts - ensuring issues are addressed from all perspectives.










Clinical Governance in Primary Care


Book Description

Extending and amplifying the principles outlined in the first edition, this book provides a description of clinical governance in primary care by a panel of renowned leading contributors - based on practical examples on how clinical governance functions in Primary Care Trusts and teams.




Improving Healthcare Quality in Europe Characteristics, Effectiveness and Implementation of Different Strategies


Book Description

This volume, developed by the Observatory together with OECD, provides an overall conceptual framework for understanding and applying strategies aimed at improving quality of care. Crucially, it summarizes available evidence on different quality strategies and provides recommendations for their implementation. This book is intended to help policy-makers to understand concepts of quality and to support them to evaluate single strategies and combinations of strategies.




A Guide to the NHS


Book Description

To maximise the effectiveness of their work, NHS employees need a clear understanding of the structures and systems of the organisation in which they work. However, this information can be widely spread, hard to access and difficult to gain a working overview of, and the pace of changes and initiatives can seem almost dizzying. This book draws together a clear picture of the modern NHS, from funding and governance to reports, inquiries and overarching legislation. The book is clear and easy to understand and crucially includes full references to provide a one-stop point of access to the most detailed and up-to-date information available. This book is essential reading for workers in the NHS at all levels, including managers, administrators and clinical professionals. It is vital reading for managers and staff at commercial companies working with the NHS. It will also be of interest to campaigners, patient interest groups, researchers and journalists with an interest in the NHS. Specialty registrars and consultants can also find the information from the book, and much more, in The Doctor's Handbook Parts 1 & 2, by the same author. 'Rather than long narrative histories or complex explanations, the author signposts readers to sources of further information, making this book the quick guide so many of us need' - from the Foreword by Sir Ian Carruthers




Clinical Governance: Improving the Quality of Healthcare for Patients and Service Users


Book Description

“An excellent book for multi-professional healthcare teams interested in quality in the context of clinical governance. Drawing on key theories related to quality in health care, the book provides an evidence-based, step by step guide, to all components of clinical governance. “ Kathleen Malkin, Health and Professional Development, Faculty of Health and Life Science, Oxford Brookes University, UK “Including in-depth coverage of the global context this new edition is a welcome extension of the excellent first edition. This is an accessible and valuable resource for students of clinical governance.” Muke Ferguson, Head of Department, Postgraduate Programmes, Anglia Ruskin University, UK The new edition of this key text offers an accessible guide to clinical governance across a range of healthcare settings. Designed to help students, practitioners, and professionals deliver quality care to patients and to improve overall patient experience, this new edition is packed with practical insight into how individuals can contribute to clinical governance. Grounded in the application of clinical governance, this text benefits from thorough worked examples of common causality diagrams; up to date consideration of high profile clinical governance case studies; reflective activities as well as tips and real experiences to help readers apply the theory to practice. This is the go-to book for students, practitioners and professionals across health and allied health disciplines including mental health nursing, midwifery, physiotherapy and occupational therapy. Mary Gottwald is currently an Associate Lecturer at Oxford Brookes University, UK, and also supports students in Hong Kong. Prior to this she was Principal Lecturer at the University and has been in education since 1979. She has taught in the UK, Malaysia and Hong Kong on subjects including Clinical Governance, Health Promotion and Leadership. Gail Lansdown is currently an Associate Lecturer at Oxford Brookes University, UK, and has been working in Higher Education since 1998. She also supports students in Hong Kong. Previously, she was a Principal Lecturer and designed, implemented, managed, led and taught on health care degree programmes in Hong Kong, China, Malaysia, Singapore and Nairobi.




Registries for Evaluating Patient Outcomes


Book Description

This User’s Guide is intended to support the design, implementation, analysis, interpretation, and quality evaluation of registries created to increase understanding of patient outcomes. For the purposes of this guide, a patient registry is an organized system that uses observational study methods to collect uniform data (clinical and other) to evaluate specified outcomes for a population defined by a particular disease, condition, or exposure, and that serves one or more predetermined scientific, clinical, or policy purposes. A registry database is a file (or files) derived from the registry. Although registries can serve many purposes, this guide focuses on registries created for one or more of the following purposes: to describe the natural history of disease, to determine clinical effectiveness or cost-effectiveness of health care products and services, to measure or monitor safety and harm, and/or to measure quality of care. Registries are classified according to how their populations are defined. For example, product registries include patients who have been exposed to biopharmaceutical products or medical devices. Health services registries consist of patients who have had a common procedure, clinical encounter, or hospitalization. Disease or condition registries are defined by patients having the same diagnosis, such as cystic fibrosis or heart failure. The User’s Guide was created by researchers affiliated with AHRQ’s Effective Health Care Program, particularly those who participated in AHRQ’s DEcIDE (Developing Evidence to Inform Decisions About Effectiveness) program. Chapters were subject to multiple internal and external independent reviews.




Key Topics in Healthcare Management


Book Description

Focusing on matters relevant to the development, provision and maintenance of best quality services for patients, clients and service users, this title presents management, leadership and professional development advice to allied health professions.