International journal for quality in health care : journal of the International Society for Quality in Health Care
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Int J Qual Health Care · Feb 2016
ReviewIncident and error reporting systems in intensive care: a systematic review of the literature.
We performed a systematic review to assess (i) to what extent incident reporting systems (IRSs) on the adult intensive care unit (ICU) meet the criteria of the WHO Draft Guidelines for Adverse Event Reporting and Learning Systems, (ii) to what extent the IRSs comply with the four aspects of the iterative quality loop and (iii) whether IRSs have led to improvement measures in clinical practice. ⋯ None of the IRSs completely fulfilled the WHO checklist criteria. With respect to the iterative loop, data input and data collection are well established but not much attention was given to analyzing incidents and to give feedback. This resulted in an administrative report system, rather than the much desired instrument for change of practice and increase of quality as an IRS can only effectively contribute to improve patient safety and quality of care if more attention is given to analyzing incidents and feedback.
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Int J Qual Health Care · Jul 2013
ReviewThe effectiveness of cultural competence programs in ethnic minority patient-centered health care--a systematic review of the literature.
To examine the effectiveness of patient-centered care (PCC) models, which incorporate a cultural competence (CC) perspective, in improving health outcomes among culturally and linguistically diverse patients. ⋯ PCC models that incorporate a CC component are increased practitioners' knowledge about and awareness of dealing with culturally diverse patients. However, there is a considerable lack of research looking into whether this increase in practitioner knowledge translates into better practice, and in turn improved patient-related outcomes. More research examining this specific relationship is, thus, needed.
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Int J Qual Health Care · Oct 2012
ReviewA review of hospital characteristics associated with improved performance.
The objective of this review was to critically appraise the literature relating to associations between high-level structural and operational hospital characteristics and improved performance. ⋯ There is limited, mainly low-quality evidence, supporting the associations between hospital characteristics and healthcare performance. Further characteristic-specific systematic reviews are indicated.
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Int J Qual Health Care · Jun 2011
ReviewIndigenous cultural training for health workers in Australia.
Culturally inappropriate health services contribute to persistent health inequalities. This article reviews approaches to indigenous cultural training for health workers and assesses how effectively they have been translated into training programmes within Australia. ⋯ This review shows that the evidence for the effectiveness of indigenous cultural training programmes in Australia is poor. Critiques of cultural training from indigenous and non-indigenous scholars suggest that a 'cultural safety' model may offer the most potential to improve the effectiveness of health services for indigenous Australians.
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Int J Qual Health Care · Dec 2009
ReviewEffectiveness of acute medical units in hospitals: a systematic review.
To assess the effectiveness of acute medical units (AMUs) in hospitals. ⋯ Limited observational data suggest AMUs reduce in-patient mortality, length of stay and emergency department access block without increasing readmission rates, and improve patient and staff satisfaction.