Focused Review of the Pre-Op Assessment Clinic at Hermitage Medical Clinic

“HCI were our providers of choice for a focused review at the Hermitage Medical Clinic’s Pre-operative Assessment Clinic due to their extensive regulatory knowledge and commitment to quality improvement. HCI really impressed us with their understanding of the HSE Model of Care for Pre-Admission Units (2014). They conducted a thorough review and presented us with detailed findings which we will utlise as a roadmap to implement best practice in our Pre-operative Assessment clinic.”

Martina Rosser

Quality and Risk Manager, Hermitage Medical Clinic

Background

The Hermitage Medical Clinic (HMC) is a 112-bed private hospital in Dublin. The Pre-Op Assessment Clinic at HMC reviews patients to make sure they are ready for surgery. The clinic plays an important role in ensuring clinical excellence in patient care and improving efficiencies at the HMC.

In order to understand the quality and safety of the Pre-Op Assessment Clinic and identify potential areas for improvement, the HMC requested HCI conduct a focused review of the Pre-Op Assessment Clinic in line with the HSE Model of Care for Pre-Admission Units (2014), the NHS 18 Week Pre-Operative Preparation Policy (2019) and best practice in general.

Objectives

Determine the current status and future challenges of the Pre-Op Assessment Clinic against the HSE Model of Care for Pre-Admission Units (2014).
Determine if the appropriate Governance structures are in place to ensure the quality and safety of the pre-op assessment clinic.
Identify if the appropriate data is being routinely collected and analysed to make informed decisions.
Develop and carry out a single survey to determine if the service is fulling the defined requirements.
Provide a detailed report outlining the findings from the focused review.

Solution

In order to ensure a comprehensive review was completed, HCI provided the following service:

Development of a project plan.

Documentation review.

Staff interviews with key personnel.

Process observation.

Conduct survey with key stakeholders.

Analysis of findings.

Development of Draft Report.

Client review of Draft Report and feedback provided to HCI.

Focused review report finalised and issued to the client.

Outcome

HCI presented Hermitage Medical Clinic with a report that detailed all of the findings of the Focused Review. The findings were set out under a subset of the criteria outlined in HSE Model of Care for Pre-Admission Units (2014). HMC will use the report to develop Quality Improvement Plans (QIPs) to address the areas for improvement as detailed in the report.

Benefits

HCI has the necessary regulatory, quality and patient safety experience which is required to carry out a comprehensive and independent review of processes.
A baseline assessment of compliance with the HSE Model of Care for Pre-Admission Units (2014).
High risk areas are identified.
Provide reassurance to management and staff that the correct processes are in place.
Generate tangible improvements in patient safety.
Identify potential opportunities to streamline the patient’s journey and improve the patient’s experience.
Standardising the pre-admissions process can improve efficiency and cost-effectiveness by reducing potential delays or cancellations of operations.
Drive quality improvement.
Allows for specific QIPs to be put in place to target the identified gaps or areas for improvement.
Ensures that the appropriate Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) are being captured and monitored.