SPHERE-Stanford Quality Improvement Program

SPHERE-Stanford Quality Improvement Program

The third round of the SPHERE-Stanford Quality Improvement Program is underway with six teams from across the SPHERE partners undertaking training in quality improvement techniques from Stanford Medicine and applying these practically to solve a local issue in their workplace. Teams from St Vincent’s Health Network, Bankstown-Lidcombe Hospital, Calvary Hospital, Liverpool Hospital, Chris O’Brien Lifehouse and the Langton Centre are addressing topics including homelessness and access to palliative care, psychosocial assessment, and social work support access at end of life, carer support, interpreter services support, discharge summaries, and patients with substance use disorders advance care planning.
Previous rounds have demonstrated positive outcomes for the participating groups, both in terms of immediate application to their clinics and patients, as well as developing skills to address other problems systematically in the workplace, and more broadly including teamwork and leadership. Teams have presented their projects within the health services, at conferences and a number are preparing journal publications.