General Patient Safety Quality Improvement and Measurement Resources
Driving quality improvement in a focused area such as a clinical group requires an understanding of the foundational elements of patient safety, quality improvement, and measurement.
Below is a list of patient safety, quality improvement and measurement resources that can be used by quality improvement teams, as well as resources for leaders.
Here is a sample of the resources available from Healthcare Excellence Canada to support your healthcare improvement efforts:
A Guide to Patient Safety Improvement
This resource has been designed to support teams across all healthcare sectors in using a knowledge translation and quality improvement integrated approach to change that will impact patient safety outcomes. This Guide for Patient Safety Improvement is intended to accompany current best available evidence change ideas, and tools and resources for your specific project. It includes ideal practice changes ("the what") and strategies ("the how") that create the evidence-informed intervention. Adaptations are expected and important considerations for implementation will be provided in this guide.
A change package is a toolkit of information that can inform the planning, implementation and evaluation of a healthcare improvement initiative that aims to create lasting benefits to patient, family, or caregiver experience, health and work life of providers.
Deteriorating Patient Condition
Early warning signs of clinical deterioration are often unrecognized, leading to devastating results. Research shows that virtually all critical inpatient events are preceded by warning signs that occur approximately six-and-a-half hours in advance.
Click here to find information, tools, and resources to not only help you recognize the deteriorating patient condition, but what you can do to act on it as a member of the public, a healthcare provider or leader.
Enhanced Recovery Canada is leading the drive to improve surgical safety across the country and is based on Enhanced Recovery After Surgery (ERAS) surgical best practices. These evidence-informed principles support better outcomes for surgical patients including: an improved patient experience, reduced length of stay, decreased complication rates, and fewer hospital readmissions.
Engaging Patients in Patient Safety – a Canadian Guide
Patient safety is the most important aspect of care according to patients and families. Patients, providers, and leaders agree that when patients participate as partners in their own care and in patient safety improvements at an organizational or system level, harm can be prevented, and incidents can be better managed. This guide is an extensive resource, based on evidence and leading practices, that aims to help patients and families, providers, and leaders partner more effectively to improve patient safety. The guide is regularly revised to include the most current evidence, resources, and guidance to shape policies, practices and meet required standards.
Through Essential Together, we're working with health and care organizations to support them in re-integrating, welcoming, and engaging essential care partners as part of care teams, during COVID-19 and beyond.
Healthcare Improvement Planner
This Healthcare Improvement Planner helps with documenting plans and actions to implement a healthcare improvement initiative that aims to create lasting improvement in patient, family, or caregiver experience, health, and work life of providers.
Improvement Frameworks Getting Started Kit
Improvement comes from the application of knowledge. It also comes from action: from developing, testing, and implementing changes which alter how work or activity is done or the makeup of a product or service. The Improvement Frameworks Getting Started Kit provides an introduction to various improvement science methodologies and provides the foundational knowledge necessary for applying the Model for Improvement to an improvement project.
Long-Term Success and Sustainability of Healthcare Improvement Guide
The Long-Term Success and Sustainability of Healthcare Improvement Guide provides tips and resources to support a healthcare improvement initiative through its implementation, evaluation, sustainability, and spread.
The Measurement and Monitoring of Safety Framework
The Measurement and Monitoring Safety Framework, created by Professor Charles Vincent and colleagues from the Health Foundation, consists of five dimensions that organizations, units, or individuals including leaders, providers, patients, and families can use to understand, guide, and improve patient safety. This new approach assesses and evaluates safety from "ward to board" by providing a comprehensive and accurate real-time view of patient safety. The Framework helps users move from "assurance" to "inquiry" by shifting away from a focus on past cases of harm towards current performance, future risks, and organizational resiliency.
Our most pressing challenges in healthcare require focused, constructive discussions. Sharing openly and listening to diverse perspectives and experiences. At Healthcare Excellence Canada, we've developed the Spotlight Series to do just that. It's about connecting people to have conversations with a purpose. Responding quickly to current issues by featuring strategies for improvement that are transferable. We'll explore solutions to make improvements last, as we work together to shape the future of quality and safety in healthcare across the country.
Patient safety experts agree that effective teamwork skills are essential for safe, quality healthcare that prevents and mitigates harm. TeamSTEPPS® is a teamwork system developed by the United States Department of Defense and the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality to improve safety and transform culture in healthcare through better teamwork, communication, leadership, situational awareness, and mutual support. TeamSTEPPS Canada™ has been adopted and adapted by Healthcare Excellence Canada and made available to the healthcare field in Canada. The program includes a comprehensive set of ready-to-use materials and a training curriculum to integrate teamwork principles into a variety of settings.
Additional Resources for Improvement
There are many organizations that provide healthcare improvement resources. Some resources from these sites are available only to members while others are open access.
British Columbia Patient Safety & Quality Council
Health Standards Organization (HSO)
Institute for Healthcare Improvement (IHI)
Canadian Agency for Drugs and Technology in Health
Canadian Medical Protective Association
Healthcare Insurance Reciprocal of Canada
Health Quality Council of Alberta
Ontario Health (Health Quality Ontario)
