Upscaling Frontline Improvement in Surgery

The Quality, Reliability, Safety and Teamwork Unit (QRSTU) have developed a model to improve patient safety at the frontline through supporting healthcare staff in implementing successful interventions. It is based on training... [ view full abstract ]

The Quality, Reliability, Safety and Teamwork Unit (QRSTU) have developed a model to improve patient safety at the frontline through supporting healthcare staff in implementing successful interventions. It is based on training frontline staff in Human Factors and Ergonomics (HFE), and providing them with support (from HFE researchers) to implement changes. Previous work by the group has demonstrated this model as successful in improving both process and clinical outcome measures at a local level. This study attempted to upscale this model by delivering it at a regional level. This resulted in a number of region wide improvement projects focused on improving the pathways for patients with right iliac fossa (RIF) pain and appendicitis. This work describes a case study of the attempts to upscale the model thus far and the researcher experiences to date.