National Safety and Quality Health Service Standards – Second edition

By Australian Commission on Safety & Quality in Health Care          [Download Resource]

‘The primary aims of the NSQHS Standards are to protect the public from harm and to improve the quality of health service provision. They provide a quality assurance mechanism that tests whether relevant systems are in place to ensure that expected standards of safety and quality are met.

There are eight NSQHS Standards, which cover high-prevalence adverse events, healthcare associated infections, medication safety, comprehensive care, clinical communication, the prevention and management of pressure injuries, the prevention of falls, and responding to clinical deterioration. Importantly, these NSQHS Standards have provided a nationally consistent statement about the standard of care consumers can expect from their health service organisations’

Key Content Areas:

• Clinical Governance Standard
• Partnering with Consumers Standard
• Preventing and Controlling Healthcare-Associated Infection Standard
• Medication Safety Standard
• Comprehensive Care Standard
• Communicating for Safety Standard
• Blood Management Standard
• Recognising and Responding to Acute Deterioration Standard
• Glossary

Effective partnerships exist when people are treated with dignity and respect, information is shared with them, and participation and collaboration in healthcare processes are encouraged and supported to the extent that people choose.

Different types of partnerships with patients and consumers exist within the healthcare system. These partnerships are not  mutually exclusive, and are needed at all levels to ensure that a health service organisation achieves the best possible outcome for all parties