WRITTEN REFLECTION 1: Consider your learning during LA 1 Observation of patient safety and

quality improvement in Hospital, GP, Community Settings

Question: How does the organisation work to enable Patient Safety and Quality Improvement?

Student Name: Evan Chee Student ID: c3358550

Your reflection needs to respond to these 4 questions [Word limit: 400 words]

1. Describe the patient safety and/or quality improvement initiative/project work you have
observed and become involved in so far.

At my GP, Randwick Medical Practice, I have particularly observed initiatives improving the quality of
patient care involving the consistent diagnosis and management of patients throughout the practice,
using accurate and up to date clinical guidelines. They achieve this through mandatory weekly team
meetings and diligent use of their internal mail system software, in which they discuss management
plans as well as teach others about recent changes in clinical guidelines. This combination of both
informal and formal communication ensures that the staff – including the practice nurse, manager
and the GPs, are up to date, and that every patient will receive a consistent standard of care no
matter who they see.

2. Describe who is involved, including their usual role and the initiative/project role. How do they
or could they contribute?

Every Thursday, a meeting is held by the GPs, practice nurse and practice manager. There is often no
set roles or agendas. The GPs and nurse take turns to contribute by presenting patient cases for
discussion, teaching the group about ways to improve patient management, or even giving tips
about how to navigate GP services, an example being how to access online PBS Authorities for
prescriptions. The practice manager makes records and helps pass on key information to any staff
not in attendance. The manager ensures everyone is complying with the appropriate laws and
guidelines.

3. Describe the resources being used to inform or guide the initiative/project work, including
relevant clinical standards, guidelines or pathways, and organisational frameworks. Be specific.

https://www.racgp.org.au/running-a-practice/practice-standards/standards-5th-edition/standards-
for-general-practices-5th-ed/table-of-contents

The RACGP’s Standards for General Practices, in particular, criterion C5.1A/B – diagnosis and
management of health issues, is used to inform and guide these initiatives. Criterion C5.1A states
that the clinical team should be able to access relevant current clinical and other guidelines that
help diagnose and manage patients and C5.1B states that the clinical team supports consistent
diagnosis and management of patients. They suggest regular meetings and a strong internal
communication system to support this.

Written Reflection 1 2024

4. Describe what you have learned about the initiative/project work so far and identify any
challenges that could impact on the initiative/project work.

I have learnt that both the weekly team meetings and use of the internal mail system help provide
consistent and evidence-based care by encouraging constant and thorough communication between
team members and shared learning materials. Challenges include management and workforce
planning, exacerbated by part-time staff schedules leading to inconsistent meeting attendance and
patient care discussion gaps. Additionally, resources shared vary in format, from podcasts to articles,
potentially conflicting with local guidelines and causing care discrepancies. Despite diverse
perspectives, alignment with local guidelines is essential to ensure uniform patient care.

The problem: having non-recommended guidelines to practice

Why? The GPs have their own sources of information – trusted colleagues, blogs/articles online.

Why? Some would rather perform their learning/professional development in ways which reach
more depth than reading only the guideline and surrounding areas.

Why? This may also be more pertinent to their own specialised style of practice which has been built
over many years past any initial standardised training.

Why?

Written Reflection 1 2024