5Schedule

5 Schedule

The quality assurance activity described in the Schedule to this declaration is, to the extent that the quality assurance activity relates to health services provided in Australia, declared to be a quality assurance activity to which Part VC of the Health Insurance Act 1973 applies.

Schedule 1—Description of quality assurance activity

1 Name of activity

The name of the quality assurance activity is CareFlight Clinical Review Meetings.

2 Description of activity

This quality assurance activity consists of clinical review meetings (CRMs), conducted by CareFlight Limited (ABN 18 210 132 023) (CareFlight) (the Activity). The Activity is conducted by CareFlight, an aeromedical charity where vehicles convey doctors, nurses, and paramedics to medical and trauma incidents to enable hospital-level assessment before transporting the patient to a hospital.

The Activity occurs monthly to quarterly, allowing CareFlight to review the quality of care provided to patients. CRMs are key opportunities for clinical staff to engage in patient safety and quality improvement.

During the Activity, case presentations using de-identified patient information highlight significant missions, opportunities for improvement, or instances where exceptional care has occurred. Deaths and deteriorations, sentinel events and medication errors are discussed when required. Any quality improvement activities being undertaken, or clinical complaints received, are also discussed.

Cases for discussion are either identified in the electronic medical record or requested by individual clinicians. A presentation is then prepared by a senior clinician, as delegated by the service’s Medical Director. In multi-disciplinary CRMs the clinical, logistical, and human factor components of cases are discussed with a focus on service and quality improvement.

As part of the Activity, a post-CRM clinical governance report is prepared that summarises the information presented, discussions, and outcomes. Recommendations for quality improvement from that report are shared with the Clinical Practice Team, which disseminates the information to the executive and other applicable CareFlight services as appropriate.

CRM action items are tracked on an Action Register that the Head of Clinical Governance monitors. Action items are assigned to the appropriate committee.