Resolving patients' complaints about hospitals: Responsive regulation by health ombudsmen. Ombudsmen help ensure integrity and accountability in societal institutions. This study of patients' complaints about hospitals to health ombudsmen in two states, and the responses of hospitals, will produce evidence on strategies for making hospitals more responsive to the public and more accountable for the quality of their care. Australia was a world leader in establishing health ombudsmen and this stud ....Resolving patients' complaints about hospitals: Responsive regulation by health ombudsmen. Ombudsmen help ensure integrity and accountability in societal institutions. This study of patients' complaints about hospitals to health ombudsmen in two states, and the responses of hospitals, will produce evidence on strategies for making hospitals more responsive to the public and more accountable for the quality of their care. Australia was a world leader in establishing health ombudsmen and this study will explore their impact upon the hospital system. Evidence-based strategies are needed to improve the accountability of service providers and regulators. Social and economic benefits flow from empowering patients and from improving hospital performance.Read moreRead less
Citizens' juries: enabling effective influenza pandemic policy through engagement with the community. The project will provide information and practical guidance to assist with South Australian pandemic management specifically and will have implications for the state and national disaster planning generally. The project will provide resources for both state and national policy makers in the form of technical reports and comprehensive public health information modules appropriate for disseminatio ....Citizens' juries: enabling effective influenza pandemic policy through engagement with the community. The project will provide information and practical guidance to assist with South Australian pandemic management specifically and will have implications for the state and national disaster planning generally. The project will provide resources for both state and national policy makers in the form of technical reports and comprehensive public health information modules appropriate for dissemination to the wider Australian community. The project will contribute to increased community awareness of pandemic influenza and enhanced community acceptance of (and cooperation with) pandemic management plans while establishing a mechanism for future pandemic and disaster policy planning and evaluation.Read moreRead less
Developing new methods for building health policy capacity in Australia. This project will contribute to improving the capacity for policy analysis, development and evaluation in the health policy workforce and state health jurisdictions in this country. Building health policy capacity will enable the Australian health system to more effectively address current and emerging challenges including an ageing population, increasing incidence of chronic disease, pressures for cost containment, continu ....Developing new methods for building health policy capacity in Australia. This project will contribute to improving the capacity for policy analysis, development and evaluation in the health policy workforce and state health jurisdictions in this country. Building health policy capacity will enable the Australian health system to more effectively address current and emerging challenges including an ageing population, increasing incidence of chronic disease, pressures for cost containment, continuing poor Aboriginal health and emerging threats to Australia's public health, health security and National Health Strategy.Read moreRead less
Maximising the Effectiveness of Public Health Policies: The Case of Smoke-Free Policies. Promoting good health and well being for all Australians is a key National Research Priority. Tobacco smoking is the largest single preventable cause of death in Australia, and while much has been achieved in tobacco control in Australia, there has been little systematic effort to understand or improve the relationship between research and policy implementation. This project will provide a deeper and more so ....Maximising the Effectiveness of Public Health Policies: The Case of Smoke-Free Policies. Promoting good health and well being for all Australians is a key National Research Priority. Tobacco smoking is the largest single preventable cause of death in Australia, and while much has been achieved in tobacco control in Australia, there has been little systematic effort to understand or improve the relationship between research and policy implementation. This project will provide a deeper and more sophisticated understanding of both how to maximise the effectiveness of smoke-free policies, and, through that increased understanding, how to best manage the implementation of public policies that seek to facilitate changes in the behaviour of individual citizens. Read moreRead less
Preventive health care: how compatible are clinicians' identity and practice with transition to the new roles that health reform requires? This project is designed to assess how health care workers cope with the various impacts of health reform and to explore ways of enhancing their preparedness for and commitment to these reforms, particularly as these reforms herald new roles, responsibilities and expectations. The significance of the project lies in the way it links reform to the in situ enac ....Preventive health care: how compatible are clinicians' identity and practice with transition to the new roles that health reform requires? This project is designed to assess how health care workers cope with the various impacts of health reform and to explore ways of enhancing their preparedness for and commitment to these reforms, particularly as these reforms herald new roles, responsibilities and expectations. The significance of the project lies in the way it links reform to the in situ enactment of clinical practice and reflection through video-recording and practitioner auto-review. The project's outcomes include increased understanding of: the tension between situated practice and reform; employee commitment to the interactive implications of reform, and video-based research as individual and organizational change methodology.Read moreRead less
Emergency Health Services: Demand and service delivery models. Congestion of emergency health services is causing considerable community concern regarding Australia's capacity to manage daily health emergencies and to respond to major incidents and disasters. The service models developed in this project will provide the basis for policy and service initiatives which will address the growing demand for emergency health services more efficiently and effectively and thus meet community expectations ....Emergency Health Services: Demand and service delivery models. Congestion of emergency health services is causing considerable community concern regarding Australia's capacity to manage daily health emergencies and to respond to major incidents and disasters. The service models developed in this project will provide the basis for policy and service initiatives which will address the growing demand for emergency health services more efficiently and effectively and thus meet community expectations. Improved services will result in improved community health and wellbeing. This project will also develop the research capacity of Australia through training of key individuals who will lead future research and development of emergency health services in Australia.Read moreRead less
Agreements as a mechanism for community participation in health policy: Understanding process and evaluating effectiveness. Improving the health of Indigenous people requires health policy that is inclusive and proactive rather than crisis driven. Formal agreements outline responsibilities and accountabilities in a shared framework that respects the rights of the parties involved. This project will evaluate the quality and effectiveness of agreements in Indigenous health by assessing their abil ....Agreements as a mechanism for community participation in health policy: Understanding process and evaluating effectiveness. Improving the health of Indigenous people requires health policy that is inclusive and proactive rather than crisis driven. Formal agreements outline responsibilities and accountabilities in a shared framework that respects the rights of the parties involved. This project will evaluate the quality and effectiveness of agreements in Indigenous health by assessing their ability to change the way governments and communities work together to improve health. The project will help ensure that future agreements reflect shared solutions for improving the health of Indigenous people in a respectful and effective way. It will also determine whether agreements work to bring community and government together to reduce inequalities in health.Read moreRead less
Coverage with Evidence Development: Application to pharmaceutical reimbursement decisions. Some new medicines produce only a small improvement in health but have considerable costs. When these medicines are trialled on only small numbers of people, uncertainty results about the value of the medicine, which can create problems for decision makers. Funding medicines where there is uncertainty may lead to harm when medicines are later found to be unsafe, or waste millions of dollars when they are ....Coverage with Evidence Development: Application to pharmaceutical reimbursement decisions. Some new medicines produce only a small improvement in health but have considerable costs. When these medicines are trialled on only small numbers of people, uncertainty results about the value of the medicine, which can create problems for decision makers. Funding medicines where there is uncertainty may lead to harm when medicines are later found to be unsafe, or waste millions of dollars when they are overpriced relative to effectiveness. Not funding medicines may disadvantage patients in whom the medicines are effective. Methods to enable access to medicines while reducing uncertainty will offer significant benefit to patients, clinicians and taxpayers. Read moreRead less
When informed consent goes poorly: A descriptive study of health care complaints and medical negligence claims. To correct process failures effectively, one must understand them. This project will improve knowledge of problems and disputes that arise when patients are 'consented' for medical treatment -- an enterprise in which thousands of Australians, many at very vulnerable stages of their lives, are engaged daily. Study findings will advance understanding of breakdowns in the informed conse ....When informed consent goes poorly: A descriptive study of health care complaints and medical negligence claims. To correct process failures effectively, one must understand them. This project will improve knowledge of problems and disputes that arise when patients are 'consented' for medical treatment -- an enterprise in which thousands of Australians, many at very vulnerable stages of their lives, are engaged daily. Study findings will advance understanding of breakdowns in the informed consent process and help shape strategies for reducing them. Our partner organisations are extraordinarily well-placed to carry insights from this work to health professionals in the field, enhancing opportunities for real benefits to patients from the research. The project fits with the national research priority of promoting and maintaining good health.Read moreRead less
Incentives and performance in the health care system. Changes in financial incentives for health care providers will have direct effects on their behaviour, which in turn influences patients' health outcomes, quality of care, and access to health care for the population. The research will provide a richer understanding of the effects of incentives, and will influence policy on the design of incentives for health care providers in Australia. Changes in incentives will ensure patients receive mo ....Incentives and performance in the health care system. Changes in financial incentives for health care providers will have direct effects on their behaviour, which in turn influences patients' health outcomes, quality of care, and access to health care for the population. The research will provide a richer understanding of the effects of incentives, and will influence policy on the design of incentives for health care providers in Australia. Changes in incentives will ensure patients receive more appropriate, higher quality, and less costly health care, in the most appropriate settings, and delivered by the most appropriate health care providers. This will have direct effects on population health and well-being and the capacity of individuals to lead healthy and productive lives.Read moreRead less