A learning health systems approach to improving the quality of care for patients in South Asia

Aiming for quality: a global compass for national learning systems

INTRODUCTION

Transforming a health system into a learning one is increasingly recognized as necessary to support the implementation of a national strategic direction on quality with a focus on frontline experience. The approach to a learning system that bridges the gap between practice and policy requires active exploration.

METHODS

This scoping review adapted the methodological framework for scoping studies from Arksey and O'Malley. The central research question focused on common themes for learning to improve the quality of health services at all levels of the national health system, from government policy to point-of-care delivery.

RESULTS

A total of 3507 records were screened, resulting in 101 articles on strategic learning across the health system: health professional level (19%), health organizational level (15%), subnational/national level (26%), multiple levels (35%), and global level (6%). Thirty-five of these articles focused on learning systems at multiple levels of the health system. A national learning system requires attention at the organizational, subnational, and national levels guided by the needs of patients, families, and the community. The compass of the national learning system is centred on four cross-cutting themes across the health system: alignment of priorities, systemwide collaboration, transparency and accountability, and knowledge sharing of real-world evidence generated at the point of care.

CONCLUSION

This paper proposes an approach for building a national learning system to improve the quality of health services. Future research is needed to validate the application of these guiding principles and make improvements based on the findings.

Pediatric Critical Care in Resource Limited Settings-Lessening the Gap Through Ongoing Collaboration, Advancement in Research and Technological Innovations

Pediatric critical care has continued to advance since our last article, "Pediatric Critical Care in Resource-Limited Settings-Overview and Lessons Learned" was written just 3 years ago. In that article, we reviewed the history, current state, and gaps in level of care between low- and middle-income countries (LMICs) and high-income countries (HICs). In this article, we have highlighted recent advancements in pediatric critical care in LMICs in the areas of research, training and education, and technology. We acknowledge how the COVID-19 pandemic has contributed to increasing the speed of some developments. We discuss the advancements, some lessons learned, as well as the ongoing gaps that need to be addressed in the coming decade. Continued understanding of the importance of equitable sustainable partnerships in the bidirectional exchange of knowledge and collaboration in all advancement efforts (research, technology, etc.) remains essential to guide all of us to new frontiers in pediatric critical care.

A comprehensive, integrated approach to quality improvement and capacity building in burn care and prevention in low and middle-income countries: An overview

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Quality improvement requires a comprehensive integrated approach.

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Clinical standards are a vital first step in improving outcomes for LMICs.

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Capacity building needs a range of educational courses from basic to advanced.

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Evaluation tools are needed to measure progress.

Consistent evidence has emerged over many years that the mortality and morbidity outcomes for burn patients in low and middle-income countries (LMICs) lag behind those in more resource rich countries. Interburns is a charity that was set up with the aim of working to reduce the disparity in the number of cases of burns as well as the outcomes for patients in LMICs. This paper provides an overview of a cyclical framework for quality improvement in burn care for use in LMICs that has been developed using an iterative process over the last 10 years. Each phase of the process is outlined together with a description of the tools used to conduct a gap analysis within the service, which is then used to frame a programme of capacity enhancement. Recent externally reviewed projects have demonstrated sustained improvement with the use of this comprehensive and integrated approach over a three-year cycle. This overview paper will be supported by further publications that present these results in detail.

Quality evaluation and future priorities for delivering acute myocardial infarction care in Sri Lanka

Aim

This study evaluates the quality of care for patients admitted with acute myocardial infarction (AMI) in a tertiary hospital in Colombo using the European Society of Cardiology Quality of Care Working Group’s guidelines (2017).

Methods

A recently implemented electronic AMI registry m-Health tool was used for prospective data collection. Each patient was assessed for eligibility for each of the six domains of quality. Global Registry of Acute Coronary Events Risk Model for predicted probability of mortality, and scores for risk of bleeding complications (CRUSADE) and severity of heart failure (Killip classification) were calculated as per published guidelines. A composite measure of quality was derived from compliance with the six domains. Patients were followed up via telephone at 30 days following discharge to evaluate outcome and satisfaction. Organisational information was assessed by administrative review and interview.

Results

Between March 2017 and April 2018, 934 patients with AMI presented to the cardiology department. The majority of patients (90.4%) presented with features of ST-elevation myocardial infarction (STEMI). Mean (SD) overall compliance with the composite quality indicator (CQI) was 44% (0.07). Compliance of ≥50% to the CQI was achieved in 9.8% of STEMI patients. The highest compliance was observed for antithrombotics during hospitalisation (79.1%) and continuous measure of patient satisfaction (76.1%). The lowest compliance was for organisational structure and care processes (22.4%).

Conclusion

This study reports a registry-based continuous evaluation of the quality of AMI care from a low and middle-income country. Priorities for improvement include improved referral, and networking of primary and secondary health facilities with the percutaneous coronary intervention centre.