Antimicrobial resistance (AMR) is a serious threat to human health and patient safety. Hundreds of people in Australia die each year as a result of AMR.
The National Standard Medication Chart (NSMC) audit aims to improve the safety and quality of medication charting in Australian hospitals who use paper-based NSMCs. Audit data can help health service organisations evaluate the effectiveness of NSMC safety features. These features can contribute to improved health outcomes for patients and identify areas for continuous quality improvement within hospitals.
World Hand Hygiene Day is held annually on 5 May. The 'Save Lives: Clean Your Hands' global campaign was launched by the World Health Organization (WHO) in 2009.
New resources are now available for World Hand Hygiene Day 2025.
The Primary and Community Healthcare Standards have been developed to support safety and quality improvements in the primary and community healthcare sector. They have been developed through extensive consultation with consumers, healthcare providers and services, professional and peak bodies, Primary Health Networks and other representatives of the sector. Results of consultations are summarised below.
APAS collects, analyses and reports on de-identified patient-level antimicrobial resistance (AMR) data from routine susceptibility testing results.
Keynote speakers that presented at National Medicine Symposium 2023.
The National Safety and Quality Health Service (NSQHS) Standards support the rights of people with intellectual disability to equitable health care. People with intellectual disability experience significant barriers in accessing safe and quality care evident through a higher mortality rate, increased incidence of preventable illness and more frequent hospital admissions.
In this section, you will find guidance and resources for implementation of the NSQHS Standards, to support healthcare rights and provision of inclusive health care.
Indicators have been developed to support monitoring of the care recommended in the Stillbirth Clinical Care Standard. Clinicians and healthcare services can use the indicators to support local quality improvement activities.
The Third Australian Atlas of Healthcare Variation investigates healthcare use in four clinical areas. Early planned caesarean section without medical or obstetric indication is included in Chapter 1 on neonatal and paediatric health.
Guidance for clinicians on the nine quality statements from the Opioid Analgesic Stewardship in Acute Pain Clinical Care Standard, as well as helpful resources.
The Commission has developed the National Consensus Statement: Essential elements for safe high-quality end-of-life care which describes the key clinical and organisational requirements for delivering excellent end-of-life care.
People receiving care have a unique perspective on the day-to-day running of a health service and how this affects them. Patient experience captures the events and experiences relevant to patients in health care, and how often it happens.
From 1 January 2023, the Australian Commission on Safety and Quality in Health Care (the Commission) became the custodian of a range of Quality Use of Medicines (QUM) functions, expanding our role in QUM stewardship. This follows the redesign of the Quality Use of Diagnostics, Therapeutics and Pathology (QUDTP) Program outlined in the 2022–23 Federal Budget.
Status updates for each function can be found below.
The Stillbirth Clinical Care Standard contains ten quality statements describing the care that should be provided to women who are pregnant or planning pregnancy, from preconception to after a stillbirth occurs. It also addresses bereavement care for parents who have experienced any form of perinatal loss.
The Commission has developed a range of tools and resources to help health service organisations deliver comprehensive care in alignment with the Comprehensive Care Standard.
Antimicrobial stewardship includes the range of activities that promote and support optimal antimicrobial prescribing and use. The aim of the Commission’s work on antimicrobial stewardship is to improve the safe and appropriate use of antimicrobials, reduce patient harm and prevent and contain antimicrobial resistance in Australia.
The Commission leads and coordinates national initiatives to reduce harm associated with transitions of care. This work addresses the risks for patients moving between healthcare providers including primary, community, acute, subacute, and aged and disability care. Information developed by the Commission helps health service organisations and clinicians identify and implement strategies for improvement.
The NMA Scheme for Ethical and Scientific Review of Multi-Centre Research is consistently recognised as a key enabler for clinical trials and research conduct in Australia. Consultation is underway for the development of a National Accreditation Scheme.