Safety and quality improvement capability and capacity
The Clinical Excellence Commission offers multiple opportunities for mental health staff to learn about safety and quality improvement. We bring individuals and teams together in an alumni to develop their knowledge and skills and share learnings across the NSW mental health system.
The CEC plan for building capability and capacity began in 2019. It is ongoing, and dynamic and will be adjusted as needs of mental health services change.
We recognise that there is a combination of knowledge, skills, attitudes and behaviours needed at all levels of Local Health Districts and Specialty Health Networks to make change and improvements happen and sustain them. This is reflected in the building capability plan below.
Mental Health Improvement Coach Program
The Mental Health Improvement Coach Program is a core component of the NSW Mental Health Patient Safety Program. The two-year professional development program aims to equips people with necessary skills to support mental health teams in their safety and quality improvement work.
What is the role of an Improvement Coach?
- undertake a diagnostics and to connect with consumers, frontline staff and executive leadership to identify local improvement priorities aligned to what matters most to them help facilitate a safety culture including the test and implementation of Safety Fundamentals for Teams
- organise and support up to three mental health teams in their safety and quality improvement projects (i.e. design, test, implement, sustain, spread)
- share learnings and collaborate across the NSW mental health system.
What are the learning outcomes?
By the end of the professional development program, participants will have:
- an understanding of safety and quality improvement in mental health service delivery across NSW
- an in-depth understanding and ability to explain core Improvement Science concepts
- the ability to apply Improvement Science tools, techniques and methods to improve the quality and safety of Mental Health service delivery
- skills in facilitating learning, communication and teamwork
- the ability to coach teams to develop, test and implement safety and quality improvement work.
What are the program commitments?
- Participation in a four-month intensive training program including two three-day workshops and four virtual learning sessions
- Participation in monthly professional development meetings, as part of Improvement Coach Alumni
- Allocation of one day (eight hours) per week to supporting mental health teams in safety and quality improvement efforts and sharing progress
- Participation in a mid-program review forum.
Virtual drop-in sessions for mental health teams
The Clinical Excellence Commission is offering virtual drop-in sessions to support mental health teams in their safety and quality improvement projects.
Mental Health Medical Leadership Forum
A Mental Health Medical Leadership Forum was held on 16 August 2019 with 26 psychiatrists and advanced trainees in attendance.
The objectives of the Medical Leadership forum were:
- inform clinicians about the vision, principles and strategy of the Mental Health Patient Safety Program,
- describe the types of harm occurring in the NSW Mental Health System,
- deliver an introduction to Improvement Science and using data for improvement,
- consider the role of medical leaders in supporting quality and safety initiatives,
- explore the learning needs of clinical leaders in relation to quality and safety improvement in their services.
While the Medical Leadership Forum was evaluated very positively by attendees, one of the findings of the evaluation was:
Multiple opportunities for engagement with the Mental Health Patient Safety Program at all levels of NSW mental health services will be necessary to ensure penetration of the vision and principles of the Mental Health Patient Safety Program and the development of a critical mass of clinicians and managers.
Mental Health Local Leaders Forum
The Mental Health Local Leaders Forum is a one-day forum for local leaders and middle managers. Key objectives for the forum are to:
- gain local leader engagement in the Mental Health Patient Safety Program
- understand the of the types of harm occurring in the NSW Mental Health System
- understand human factors and patient safety
- apply theories to build psychological safety in teams
- understand the model for improvement and measurement
- identify the role of local leaders in empowering frontline teams and sponsoring safety and quality improvement projects.