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Implementation and evaluation of a multisite drug usage evaluation program across Australian hospitals - a quality improvement initiative.

ABSTRACT: BACKGROUND: With the use of medicines being a broad and extensive part of health management, mechanisms to ensure quality use of medicines are essential. Drug usage evaluation (DUE) is an evidence-based quality improvement methodology, designed to improve the quality, safety and cost-effectiveness of drug use. The purpose of this paper is to describe a national DUE methodology used to improve health care delivery across the continuum through multi-faceted intervention involving audit and feedback, academic detailing and system change, and a qualitative assessment of the methodology, as illustrated by the Acute Postoperative Pain Management (APOP) project. METHODS: An established methodology, consisting of a baseline audit of inpatient medical records, structured patient interviews and general practitioner surveys, followed by an educational intervention and follow-up audit, is used. Australian hospitals, including private, public, metropolitan and regional, are invited to participate on a voluntary basis. De-identified data collected by hospitals are collated and evaluated nationally to provide descriptive comparative analyses. Hospitals benchmark their practices against state and national results to facilitate change. The educational intervention consists of academic detailing, group education, audit and feedback, point-of-prescribing prompts and system changes. A repeat data collection is undertaken to assess changes in practice.An online qualitative survey was undertaken to evaluate the APOP program. Qualitative assessment of hospitals' perceptions of the effectiveness of the overall DUE methodology and changes in procedure/prescribing/policy/clinical practice which resulted from participation were elicited. RESULTS: 62 hospitals participated in the APOP project. Among 23 respondents to the evaluation survey, 18 (78%) reported improvements in the documentation of pain scores at their hospital. 15 (65%) strongly agreed or agreed that participation in APOP directly resulted in increased prescribing of multimodal analgesia for pain relief in postoperative patients. CONCLUSIONS: This national DUE program has facilitated the engagement and participation of a number of acute health care facilities to address issues relating to quality use of medicine. This approach has been perceived to be effective in helping them achieve improvements in patient care.

SUBMITTER: Pulver LK

PROVIDER: S-EPMC3182891 | biostudies-other | 2011

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-other

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Implementation and evaluation of a multisite drug usage evaluation program across Australian hospitals - a quality improvement initiative.

Pulver Lisa K LK Wai Angela A Maxwell David J DJ Robertson Marion B MB Riddell Steven S

BMC health services research 20110829

<h4>Background</h4>With the use of medicines being a broad and extensive part of health management, mechanisms to ensure quality use of medicines are essential. Drug usage evaluation (DUE) is an evidence-based quality improvement methodology, designed to improve the quality, safety and cost-effectiveness of drug use. The purpose of this paper is to describe a national DUE methodology used to improve health care delivery across the continuum through multi-faceted intervention involving audit and ...[more]

PMID: 21871132

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Project description:BACKGROUND:Quality Improvement (QI) initiatives in primary care are effective at improving uptake of evidence based guidelines, but are difficult to implement and sustain. In Australia meso-level health organisations such as Primary health care Organisations (PHCO) offer new opportunities to implement area-wide QI programs. This study sought to identify enablers and barriers to implementation of an existing Australian QI program and to identify strategic directions that PHCOs can use in the ongoing development of QI in this environment. METHODS:Semi-structured telephone interviews were conducted with 15 purposively selected program staff and participants from the Australian Primary Care Collaborative (APCC) QI program. Interviewees included seven people involved in design, administration and implementation of the APCC program and eight primary care providers (seven General Practitioners (GPs) and one practice nurse) who had participated in the program from 2004 to 2014. Interviewees were asked to describe their experience of the program and reflect on what enabled or impeded its implementation. Interviews were recorded, transcribed and iteratively analysed, with early analysis informing subsequent interviews. Identified themes and their implications were reviewed by a GP expert reference group. RESULTS:Implementation enablers and barriers were grouped into five thematic areas: (1) leadership, particularly the identification and utilisation of change champions; (2) organisational culture that supports quality improvement; (3) funding incentives that support a culture of quality and innovation; (4) access to and use of accurate data; and 5) design and utilisation of clinical systems that enable and support these issues. In all of these areas, the active involvement of an overarching external support organisation was considered a key ingredient to successful implementation. CONCLUSION:There are substantial opportunities for PHCOs to play a pivotal role in QI implementation in Australia and internationally. In developing QI programs and policies, such organisations ought to invest their efforts in: (1) identifying and mentoring local leaders; (2) fostering QI culture via development of local peer networks; (3) developing and advocating for alternative funding models to support and incentivise these activities; (4) investing in data and audit tool infrastructure; and (5) facilitation of systems implementation within primary care practices.

Project description:OBJECTIVE:To assess whether a multiphase, departmental quality improvement effort decreases opioid prescribing and increases multimodal analgesic use after cesarean delivery. METHODS:This is a prospective quality improvement study. In phase 1 of the protocol, discharge providers implemented counseling regarding expectations for pain, typical need for opioids, and importance of multimodal nonopioid analgesic use and used shared decision-making to determine the number of opioids prescribed. Patients could select up to a maximum of 30 tablets of 5 mg oxycodone (or equivalent opioid), lower than the previous routine discharge prescription of 40 opioid tablets. The primary outcome was the mean (SD) number of opioid tablets prescribed on discharge with secondary outcomes including opioid refill rate within 30 days of discharge and rates of nonopioid analgesic prescriptions on discharge. In phase 2, using these results, we adjusted the protocol's maximum opioid prescription to 25 opioid tablets, but no other aspects of the protocol were changed. All data were analyzed with t test and ? analyses. RESULTS:Data from 624 women who underwent cesarean deliveries were analyzed. Opioids, most commonly oxycodone, were prescribed after 95% of all cesarean deliveries. The mean (SD) number of opioid tablets prescribed decreased from 33.2 (9.3) to 26.5 (6.7; P<.01) with the implementation of phase 1 having no effect on the opioid refill rate, 8.9% vs 8.1% (P=.79). These results allowed adjustment of the maximum recommended prescription to 25 opioid tablets, introducing phase 2 of the study, during which the mean (SD) number of opioid tablets prescribed further decreased from 24.9 (7.5) to 21.5 (6.3; P<.01) with no effect on the opioid refill rate, 6.3% vs 5.1% (P=.72). Overall, this represents a 35% decrease in opioid prescribing (P<.01). Rates of ibuprofen prescribing were 98% or higher throughout the study, but rates of acetaminophen prescribing increased from 32.6% before phase 1 to 92.0% after phase 2 (P<.001). CONCLUSION:Implementation of a multiphase quality improvement protocol to decrease opioid prescribing, combined with iterative review of discharge data, resulted in a significant decrease in the number of opioid tablets prescribed after cesarean delivery.

Project description:BackgroundThere are discrepancies between evidence-based guidelines for screening and management of cardiovascular disease (CVD) and implementation in Australian general practice. Quality-improvement (QI) initiatives aim to reduce these gaps. This study evaluated a QI program (QPulse) that focussed on CVD assessment and management.MethodsThis mixed-methods study explored the implementation of guidelines and adoption of a QI program with a CVD risk-reduction intervention in 34 general practices. CVD screening and management were measured pre- and post-intervention. Qualitative analyses examined participants' Plan-Do-Study-Act (PDSA) goals and in-depth interviews with practice stakeholders focussed on barriers and enablers to the program and were analysed thematically using Normalisation Process Theory (NPT).ResultsPre- and post-intervention data were available from 15 practices (n = 19,562 and n = 20,249, respectively) and in-depth interviews from seven practices. At baseline, 45.0% of patients had their BMI measured and 15.6% had their waist circumference recorded in the past 2 years and blood pressure, lipids and smoking status were measured in 72.5, 61.5 and 65.3% of patients, respectively. Most high-risk patients (57.5%) were not prescribed risk-reducing medications. After the intervention there were no changes in the documentation and prevalence of risk factors, attainment of BP and lipid targets or prescription of CVD risk-reducing medications. However, there was variation in performance across practices with some showing isolated improvements, such as recording waist circumference (0.7-32.2% pre-intervention to 18.5-69.8% post-intervention), BMI and smoking assessment. Challenges to the program included: lack of time, need for technical support, a perceived lack of value for quality improvement work, difficulty disseminating knowledge across the practice team, tensions between the team and clinical staff and a part-time workforce.ConclusionThe barriers associated with this QI program was considerable in Australian GP practices. Findings highlighted they were not able to effectively operationalise the intervention due to numerous factors, ranging from lack of internal capacity and leadership to competing demands and insufficient external support.Trial registrationAustralian New Zealand Clinical Trials Reference Number ( ACTRN12615000108516 ), registered 06/02/2015.

Project description:Health information technology (HIT)-supported quality improvement initiatives have been shown to increase ambulatory care quality for several chronic conditions and preventive services, but it is not known whether these types of initiatives reduce disparities.To examine the effects of a multifaceted, HIT-supported quality improvement initiative on disparities in ambulatory care.Time series models were used to assess changes in racial disparities in performance between white and black patients for 17 measures of chronic disease and preventive care from February 2008 through February 2010, the first 2 years after implementation of a HIT-supported, provider-directed quality improvement initiative.Black and white adults receiving care in an academic general internal medicine practice in Chicago.The quality improvement initiative used provider-directed point-of-care clinical decision support tools and quality feedback to target improvement in process of care and intermediate outcome measures for coronary heart disease, heart failure, hypertension, and diabetes as well as receipt of several preventive services.Modeled rate of change in performance, stratified by race and modeled rate of change in disparities for 17 ambulatory care quality measuresQuality of care improved for 14 of 17 measures among white patients and 10 of 17 measures among black patients. Quality improved for both white and black patients for five of eight process of care measures, four of five preventive services, but none of the four intermediate outcome measures. Of the seven measures with racial disparities at baseline, disparities declined for two, remained stable for four, and increased for one measure after implementation of the quality improvement initiative.Generalized and provider-directed quality improvement initiatives can decrease racial disparities for some chronic disease and preventive care measures, but achieving equity in areas with persistent disparities will require more targeted, patient-directed, and systems-oriented strategies.

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Implementation and evaluation of a multisite drug usage evaluation program across Australian hospitals - a quality improvement initiative.

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Implementation and evaluation of a multisite drug usage evaluation program across Australian hospitals - a quality improvement initiative.

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