> Resources and Publications > PHC RIS infonet > June 2009 > Australian Primary Care Collaboratives

Australian Primary Care Collaboratives Program introduces new measures to help practices improve patient care

Following review by the Australian Primary Care Collaboratives (APCC) Program’s Expert Reference Panels, and consultation with national expert organisations, the Program is improving how practices measure by introducing a range of changes to the Program measures.

The ability to measure is a fundamental part of improvement, including improving the delivery of clinical care. In 2005 the APCC Program introduced measures to support and monitor practice improvement. These measures have proven to be a sound basis for measuring key aspects of the Program, including the care provided by practices.

“The current APCC Program measurement set has now been updated to reflect the latest evidence and also introduces new measures that are all designed to help produce better outcomes for patients and practices”, says Dr Dale Ford, a GP in Hamilton Victoria, and Principal Clinical Advisor to Improvement Foundation Australia (IFA).

Ford says the Program “is also taking the opportunity to introduce additional clinical areas of measurement, such as Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD) and prevention measures. Many APCC practices have achieved significant improvement in Coronary Heart Disease (CHD) and Diabetes and will now have the capacity to measure improvements in other clinical areas”.

IFA is making it easier to submit data by introducing electronic data submission to the Program’s secure reporting web portal. The web portal also allows practices to review feedback graphs and access a broad range of Program materials.

The first phase of the Program achieved significant outcomes for practices and patients and new APCC Program waves will be starting soon. Practices involved in the current phase are also achieving excellent results and IFA looks forward to continuing to work with the Divisions’ network to further spread quality improvement across primary care. If your practice is interested in participating, talk to your Division today or visit <www.apcc.org.au>

For more information about the new APCC Program measures, the Pen CAT, or the web portal visit <www.apcc.org.au>