General Practices
General Practices, Aboriginal Medical Services (AMS), Medical Deputising Services (MDS), After-Hours Services and Royal Flying Doctor Services are recognised for their commitment to safety, quality and continuous improvements with the award of accreditation.
Accreditation is independent recognition that a practice meets the requirements of governing industry standards.
Majority of general practices and Aboriginal Medical Services in Australia are accredited by Australian General Practice Accreditation Limited (AGPAL) against the Royal Australian College of General Practitioners (RACGP) Standards for general practices.
As practices enhance their care and service offerings to become multi-disciplinary hubs within their community, the need for accreditation against additional national standards is increasing.
QIP works with these practices to coordinate and streamline varied accreditation programs, across multiple sites, service and patient needs to reassure their local community of their commitment to delivering high levels of safety and quality.
AGPAL is Australia’s leading not-for-profit general practice accreditation provider with over 21 years' experience supporting the delivery of high quality and safe healthcare across the sector.
Enhanced service offerings for general practices
For many Australians, their general practice or Aboriginal Medical Service is their first point of call for a broad range of health needs and as a result, multi-disciplinary healthcare practices continue to grow.
Whether practice offerings include diagnostic imaging, mental health, physiotherapy, dental and other allied and specialised health services, QIP delivers a variety of national accreditation programs to cater to these requirements.
Many of these accreditation programs are delivered against the National Safety and Quality Health Service (NSQHS) Standards, developed and governed by the Australian Commission on Safety and Quality in Healthcare (the Commission), with an aim of providing a nationally consistent statement about the level of care consumers can expect from health services across Australia.
In addition to standards which support safe, quality delivery of care, QIP accreditation programs that enhance ‘whole of organisation’ quality, systems and processes, consumer engagement and inclusivity are also available. Award of QIP accreditation against the QIC Health and Community Services Standards and/or the Rainbow Tick Standards, for example, can drive organisational capacity with a focus on enhancing accountability to the community, inclusive service provision and care for consumers.
Benefits of accreditation
Consumer confidence
Reassures patients and the local community of a health services’ commitment to deliver quality-focused services and care.
Reduce business risk
Allows for ongoing review, monitoring & improvement of systems, processes & culture; enabling risk management & mitigation.
Quality team
Educating and engaging a health service’s team in the process of quality improvement can build a culture of quality among staff.
Industry benchmark
Offers confidence to patients of the service delivery and care provided and can assist health services to meet regulatory requirements for funding incentives.
Quality improvement
Reflects a health service’s commitment to continuous quality improvements in systems, processes, policies, culture, risk management and staff management.
Enhanced services
Provides opportunities to identify areas for improvement and implement solutions to enhance patient care and service experiences.
How QIP supports organisations
Tailored support
QIP has trained QIP Client Liaison Teams on hand to answer any questions clients may have about their accreditation, certification or verification. With expert knowledge of each of the standards or frameworks, evidence requirements and the self-assessment process, QIP’s Client Liaison Teams provide clients with on-going advice throughout their cycle.
QIP’s accreditation hub
The QIP accreditation hub is an online platform tailored to each client’s individual accreditation timelines and framework requirements. It includes a personalised action plan, a resource library and a number of other features to support clients throughout their accreditation journey.
Access to AccreditationPro
QIP’s online self-assessment software, known as AccreditationPro, streamlines accreditation preparation by helping clients determine their organisation’s compliance with an applicable set of Standards.
Access to online resources and education
QIP’s online Education and Resource Library, provides clients with access to a range of practical, informative and customisable resources to support organisations in complying with the relevant industry Standards.
Regular news and e-newsletters
Stay up-to-date with industry and organisational news, helpful tips and your standards information with QIP communications including periodical e-newsletters advising of any changes to processes, systems, standards or evidence requirements are released.
Highly trained assessment teams
QIP’s Assessors are highly trained and qualified peer assessors who work across the Australian health, community and human services sectors. Our team will share their knowledge and support organisations through the accreditation assessment.
Celebrating the achievement of accreditation
Achieving QIP accreditation takes dedication, team work and a commitment to continuous quality improvement. When organisations achieve their accredited, certificated or verified status, they are provided with their own 'Promotional Toolkit' filled with a number of materials to celebrate and promote this achievement.
The QIP Accredited Symbol is one way consumers and local community can be reassured that an organisation has been recognised for their commitment to delivering a safe and quality-focused service.
Become part of our online community
Join us on social media to celebrate organisation achievements made within the health, community and human services sectors and to be kept up-to-date with the latest industry news and events, including QIP and AGPAL updates.
