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Australian Journal of Primary Health Australian Journal of Primary Health Society
The issues influencing community health services and primary health care
RESEARCH ARTICLE

Quality improvement in Indigenous primary health care: History, current initiatives and future directors

Ross Bailie, Beverly Sibthorpe, Karen Gardner and Damin Si

Australian Journal of Primary Health 14(2) 53 - 57
Published: 2008

Abstract

This paper addresses the question: "What is the current situation for Aboriginal primary health care services in relation to continuous quality improvement (CQI) in clinical care and what is needed for sustainable practice to be achievable five years from now?" The paper describes a number of recent CQI initiatives that evolved within an accountability framework, the origins of which are based on a top-down government approach to performance measurement. Over the last decade there has been a shift to a more negotiated approach and most recently to an emerging agenda that focuses more on systems to support CQI at the primary care coalface. Further development should aim to capitalise on the synergies between different CQI-related initiatives and effectively align quality improvement with performance measurement. Principles of CQI and key challenges for the future are identified.

https://doi.org/10.1071/PY08022

© La Trobe University 2008

Committee on Publication Ethics


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