Transcript AMQuIP - The Lowitja Institute

Linking community with key
research implementation activities
Improving the Culture of Hospitals Project
John Willis
Project Manager
Improving the Culture of Hospitals Project
LaTrobe University
Congress Lowitja
March 2010
Literature review

Cultural sensitivity needs to take a system wide
approach to be effective

Systemic change is required not just training

Continuous Quality Improvement (CQI) has been
effective in improving health care for non-Aboriginal
Australians

CQI can be adapted to be culturally specific and
requires involvement of Aboriginal staff and
community

There needs to be a cultural shift in the way hospitals
approach quality
Background

Aboriginal & Torres Strait Islander Accreditation
Report (Renhard & Anderson, 2002)

Data accuracy due to two factors
• Effectiveness of admin practices and systems
• Preparedness of ATSI people to identify



Link b/w data accuracy and status disclosure means we
need to develop culturally safe services
To bring about organisational change, need explicit
accountability framework accompanied by data collection
and analysis
Level of effectiveness of relationships with Aboriginal
communities will be determined by the absence or
presence of management systems
Background (cont.)

Improving the Culture of Hospitals Project
(Renhard, Chong, Willis, Clarke & Wilson, 2010)



Examined successful Aboriginal and Torres
Strait Islander programs within a quality
improvement framework
Information used to generate Framework and
Toolkit which includes tools and guidelines for
each step of the quality improvement process
Aim is to bring about and sustain cultural change
within the hospital environment to improve
cultural sensitivity
ICHP Learning's
Helped us think about building relationships with
the communities in a strategic way not just in terms of
developing an antenatal leaflet.
This Toolkit explicitly identifies consultation with
Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander communities which is
often missed in other processes.’
We need more resources like this that help us gather
information from families and people…that help us say
‘tell us your story’ rather than rely on complaints
procedures.
ICHP Learning's
Hospital executive made this comment:
We need EQuIP to include a standard that specifically
refers to Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander cultural
sensitivity. It could be framed in a cultural way like ‘how
well is the Aboriginal patient’s milieu taken into account
in the provision of care’… and then links the Toolkit as a
resource… to assist hospital staff to respond to the
standard.
Project Recommendations
1.
2.
Senior hospital staff should undertake training
Health funding agreements should:
a)
b)
3.
4.
5.
Recommend the use of the ICHP Framework and Toolkit including the
establishment of a national Aboriginal CQI clearing house
Hospital funding agreements should include training for AHLO CQI
training program and maintenance of network of Aboriginal CQI workers
Commonwealth, state and territory health funding should provide
funds for further research and development ICHP Framework and
Toolkit .
Australian Council of Healthcare Standards (ACHS) should include
Aboriginal specific standards and include reference to ICHP
Framework and Toolkit
An evaluation of Aboriginal specific CQI process and tools should be
conducted in two years
Knowledge Transfer

First round table meeting:


with ACHS and high level jurisdictional staff from
the Commonwealth, states and territories
responsible for acute care policy monitoring and
development to explore the findings from the
project
Second round table meeting:

with ACHS and key ICHP stakeholders,
predominantly Aboriginal and Torres Strait
Islander staff to provide feedback on draft
Aboriginal specific standards
Outcomes
The knowledge transfer activity has:

Facilitated key Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander project
stakeholders in providing expert feedback to ACHS

Provided ACHS with broader Aboriginal and Torres Strait
Islander feedback than their original process

Provided ACHS with the experience of how to engage with
the Aboriginal & Torres Strait Islander sector

Facilitated General Manager of Hospital hearing the issues
first hand from key Aboriginal & Torres Strait Islander
people