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Our Commitment
Newcastle Eye Hospital is committed to the ongoing improvement of patient care, safety and the quality of services provided to our patients.
There are a number of initiatives that we utilise to facilitate the planning, implementation and evaluation of our services to ensure they are being maintained to the highest standards.
Accreditation
Newcastle Eye Hospital is fully accredited by the Australian Council on Health Care Standards (ACHS). Accreditation involves the review of the hospital by a team of expert health professionals to measure the quality and safety of services provided.
The criteria for the accreditation process of Newcastle Eye Hospital (EQuIP National for Day Procedure Centres) is extensive and includes 15 Standards of care including the recently introduced 10 National Safety and Quality Health Service Standards (NSQHSS), 63 Criteria and 340 individual actions that are required to be met by our facility.
This major review occurs every three years with a cycle of self-assessment and partial review during this three year period to ensure that patient quality and safety remain a focus for Newcastle Eye Hospital.
Clinical Performance
Measuring and Benchmarking for Best Care
Review and monitoring of the clinical performance of Newcastle Eye Hospital is essential in the quality improvement process. Newcastle Eye Hospital has developed an extensive Quality Plan to frame the existing processes used for quality activities. This plan is reviewed annually by the management team.
We continue to participate in the collection and submission of clinical performance related data in order to monitor our level of service delivery.
ACHS Clinical Indicators
The Clinical Indicator Program is a data collection, analysis and reporting service provided by the ACHS to member healthcare organisations. It provides a national clinical benchmarking service and is comprised of comparative information on the processes and outcomes of healthcare.
Submitted data are aggregated and analysed twice yearly and results are provided in the form of comparative reports. These reports compare results across all contributing organisations as well as providing a comparison with ‘peer’ organisations based on a number of variables.
QPS Benchmarking
The Benchmarking Program provides a comprehensive set of indicators aligned to the Industry Standards which assist organisations to measure internal performance as well as compare results within the industry group. The data collection process is underpinned by standardised definitions, criteria, data collection tools and scorecards.
The QPS program is a vital tool in measuring and monitoring our performance in patient safety and service delivery in comparison to other similar healthcare facilities. These indicators are collected every three months for data submission and reporting and provide an ongoing comparison of Newcastle Eye Hospital’s performance.
Hand Hygiene Australia
Health care associated infections (HCAI) are a major and growing issue in the quality and safety of health care, in both the hospital and community settings. HCAIs have been nominated as a priority area by the Australian Commission on Safety and Quality in Health Care (ACSQHC).
Improved healthcare worker hand hygiene (HH) is the highest priority area to reduce the risk of healthcare-associated infections. Reliable indicators of HH compliance are essential, and Newcastle Eye Hospital uses an external infection control contractor who is a ‘Gold Standard’ auditor to observe, review and submit data relating to the hand hygiene practices of the Newcastle Eye Hospital staff.
Each opportunity to perform hand hygiene is identified as a moment, and the World Health Organisation has developed the ‘Five Moments for Hand Hygiene’ program to highlight the critical times when hand hygiene should be performed by staff. All Newcastle Eye Hospital staff have received education on hand hygiene and completed training on the Five Moments for Hand Hygiene via the Hand Hygiene Australia website.
The Five Moments are:
- Before Touching a Patient
- Before a Procedure
- After a Procedure
- After Touching a Patient
- After Touching a Patient’s Belongings or Surroundings
Patient Satisfaction
At Newcastle Eye Hospital, we value the input we receive from patients when evaluating the quality and safety of services that we provide. We conduct annual Patient Satisfaction surveys to gather feedback from patients and their carers regarding their experiences with our facility.
We also encourage feedback from our patients through a suggestion box and questionnaire located in the reception area as well as direct contact with the Director of Nursing or Office Manager for concerns regarding patient care.
Newcastle Eye Hospital has adopted the Australian Charter of Healthcare Rights which is made available to all patients and provides further information on how to express any concerns you may have with your care. A copy of the Australian Charter of Healthcare Rights is provided to all of our patients.
