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International standards

Recent Clients


County of Sonderjylland
Denmark

Federation of
Bosnia-Herzegovina

Instituto da Qualidade
em Saude
Portugal

Netcare Healthcare Holdings, South Africa

Phase 1: HQS has completed the first phase of a project helping the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina re-establish the country's health service as part of a World Bank project. The work was undertaken as part of a consortium led by HQS, which included Charles Shaw, formerly of CASPE Research, and Mike Lee-Jones from the Hospital Accreditation Programme, and comprised:

• formulating a national policy on health care quality and safety
• drafting legislation for the establishment of the Agency for Quality Improvement and Accreditation
• developing a strategy and business plan for the Agency
• developing a training plan and programme for health care quality improvement and safety
• developing a programme for the development of standards and clinical guidelines

Phase 2: the services under the second project phase which commenced in 2003 include the following:

• development of criteria for health care institutions accreditation
• specification of requirements for federal accreditation programme
• implementation of training programme
• monitoring of clinical practice guidelines development by local consultants
• technical assistance for the development of organisational and clinical standards
• development of guidance, manuals, questionnaires and other documents for accreditation programme
• specification of database for accredited health institutions, local quality co-ordinators and assessors
• technical assistance for realisation of the Agency's Strategic and Business Plan
• piloting of accreditation system

HQS has now delivered a training programme on quality systems, accreditation and risk management, and three standards development workshops. HQS client mangers have visited the volunteer organisations that will pilot the accreditation programme. The work is based on the HQS model but being adapted, in partnership with healthcare professionals and the ministries of health, to ensure that the approach and standards are appropriate for this small country.

In addition to work from HQS, sessions have been run by Peter Littlejohns and Gillian Leng of NICE on developing clinical guidelines, and Dr Charles Shaw is advising on issues such as quality systems in healthcare, management of information resources and the training and on-going accreditation of doctors and other health care professionals.

The project will run initially until spring 2004, by which time the standards will be published and out for implementation in hospitals and health centres, and local health care professionals will be trained as peer review surveyors.

For further information please contact Helen Crisp, Director of Development, email: hcrisp@hqs.org.uk