Designing an Effective Audit Process for ACT Ambulance Service
Lincoln Fowler1, Wendy Beckingham11Australian Capital Territory Ambulance Service, Canberra, Australian Capital Territory, Australia
Pre-hospital care is often outside the realm of standard health care which means that infection prevention and control audit systems are difficult to replicate. ACT Ambulance Service (ACTAS) is planning to gain accreditation against the Australian Commission on Safety and Quality in Health Care: Preventing and Controlling Infections Standard (2021). To achieve accreditation, ACTAS must develop data collection and management systems, that are relevant to the ambulance service.
To achieve compliance with the Standard’s 19 actions, selection of appropriate key performance indicators (KPIs) is required. Direct audit of clinical skills is onerous because care is not confined to a fixed location. Ambulance stations are not used for treating patients. An ambulance stretcher is a surrogate hospital bed, but care is frequently delivered in a house or outside on the road or similar location.
To develop KPIs, the quality cycle model was firstly introduced to all parts of the organisation. Then visits to all ambulance stations were conducted. Finally, issues found were discussed with ACTAS staff which allowed us to develop an acceptable approach to auditing and monitoring of improvements.
The KPIs developed are centred on customer satisfaction, paramedic competency and credentialling, knowledge of infection control and centrality of hand hygiene and standard precautions, and safety of workplace.
The compilation of the KPI statements and associated audit tools provides a foundation for accreditation against the Standard. The proof will be in the completion of an audit cycle and development of action plans, in addition to passing of accreditation.
Biography
Lincoln commenced working for ACT Ambulance Service as the organisations first ever IP&C Officer just as the pandemic started to break out in Australia. His 30 years’ experience in a variety of health care settings made the transition to a new setting relatively easy. He remains passionate about achieving best outcomes for all consumers by maintaining excellent IP&C standards. He is still registered as a nurse, has an initial degree majoring in microbiology., and a Grad Dip in Public Health as well as a Master of Divinity. For fun he still tries to speak and write in French.