Safety and quality training

The SA Health Safety and Quality Unit works in partnership with health services and consumers to improve patient safety and quality of care.Its current priorities tie closely to the national agenda of the Australian Commission for Safety and Quality in Health Care.

These priorities have been determined based on evidence of the greatest benefit for consumers, and focus on saving lives and reducing harm.

Online courses for SA Health staff

Online courses are being developed to support the 8 National Safety and Quality Health Service Standards. SA Health staff can access the courses as they are released via their local learning management system (LMS) or:

Further information on accessing the Safety and Quality online course, please refer to the SA Health intranet site Safety and Quality eLearning page or email Health.DHWClinicalGovernanceEnquiries@sa.gov.au.

Aseptic technique course

This course promotes the principles and application of aseptic technique in clinical practice. It aligns with Australian standards in health care including the National Safety and Quality Health Service Standards. It is intended for multidisciplinary clinical staff that perform any procedures requiring aseptic technique.

Basic Life Support - Adult course

Basic Life Support (BLS) is the preservation of life by the initial establishment and maintenance of airway, breathing, circulation and related emergency care including cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) and the use of an Automated External Defibrillator (AED) if available. This course is intended for SA Health employees who may be bystanders, first aid providers, first and second responders and healthcare professionals. The SA Health BLS programme also has a face-to-face workshop. Completion of this eLearning course is a pre-requisite to attending the face-to-face workshop. The frequency of completing this course and the face-to-face workshop will be determined by your Local Health Network (LHN). The face-to-face workshop focuses on the application and assessment of BLS skills.

On successful completion of this module you will be able to:

  • list the steps in the Australian New Zealand Resuscitation Committee on Resuscitation (ANZCOR) Basic Life Support flowchart, January 2016
  • demonstrate knowledge and understanding of the skills necessary to effectively perform Basic Life Support
  • apply the steps in the Basic Life Support flowchart in a simulated scenario in a follow-up face-to-face workshop.

The course will take approximately 1 hour to complete.

Challenging behaviour - An introduction to preventing and responding course

This course is intended for all staff as an introduction to challenging behaviour, and about the strategies that can be put into place to prevent and, when necessary, respond to these incidents. The course presents the consumer and worker perspectives in challenging behaviour settings.

Core elements of the course are:

  • what is challenging behaviour, when and where does it occur, and what can trigger it?
  • prevention strategies, designed to assist services to implement proactive actions
  • actions to be taken at each stage of an incident - early intervention, during and after, including when and how staff can get assistance during and after an event, and follow-up with consumers to promote recovery.

Completing the course will assist staff to identify what other training their role may require, and key legislation and policy requirements.

Clinical handover course

This course promotes best practice clinical handover and will provide a basis for you and your team to adapt clinical handover processes to meet your specific needs and clinical context. This course is intended for clinical staff involved in direct and indirect patient care but is also valuable for staff that support clinicians in clinical handover, for example ward clerks.

Infection control course

This interactive online course provides staff with an overview of the principles and practices required to prevent the transmission of infection in all healthcare settings. This training is suitable for all staff involved in direct patient care and meets one of the requirements for staff training mandated in the National Safety and Quality Health Service Standards – Standard 3.

Scenario-based topics include the principles of disease transmission, the application of standard and transmission-based precautions, safe management of sharps, equipment reprocessing, environmental hygiene, and staff health. There are separate courses that cover aseptic technique and the safe use of personal protective equipment.

Falls prevention course

This course will assist in the translation of the national guidelines into practice, and to meet accreditation requirements. This course is for all staff involved in direct care. It includes additional resource materials for Falls Prevention Leaders and others to use as reference. This course will:

  • enable learners to recognise the importance of preventing falls and harm from falls
  • identify common risk factors, high risk situations and conditions
  • identify appropriate multifactorial actions; take action following a fall incident
  • identify actions to engage consumers and carers.

High risk medicines courses

Introduction course

This is an interactive and engaging online learning experience designed to equip staff with the knowledge and strategies required to prevent errors with high risk medicines. It complies with the SA Health High Risk Medicines Management Policy Directive and is intended for all staff involved in medicines management. The learning module is free and takes about 30 minutes to complete.

Anticoagulants

This course promotes the safe use of anticoagulants by introducing the causes of errors with anticoagulants and equipping staff with strategies to prevent errors. The course is interactive and contributes to professional development points. A certificate is downloadable on successful completion of the module, which is free and takes about one hour to complete. This course is intended for all staff involved in medicines management.

Insulin

Insulin is highly effective when used appropriately but it is also recognised as being one of the top five medicines reported in global incident monitoring systems. The second in the series, this interactive course is designed to raise front line staff awareness of errors that commonly occur with insulin and support them in developing strategies to minimise opportunities for error.

The module is free, takes about 60 minutes to complete and is suitable for contribution to continuing professional development points. It can be completed in stages which you can return to later and certificate is downloadable on successful completion of the self- assessment questions.

Labelling for safety – injectable medicines, fluids and lines course

This course promotes the principles and application of safe labelling of medicines in clinical practice. It complies with the SA Health Directive on user-applied labelling of injectable medicines, fluids and lines based on the National Recommendations developed by the Australian Commission on Safety and Quality in Health Care. This course is intended for clinical staff involved in direct patient care; in particular, for staff involved in the preparation and administration of injectable medicines in a clinical or ward area.

Minimising restrictive practices course

This course is intended as an introduction to the range of issues that healthcare providers must reflect upon when faced with a situation where restraint or seclusion is being considered as an option in resolving a challenging interaction with a consumer. The course covers actions to take before, during and after. At the end of the course, participants will be able to

  • describe what restrictive practices are, and the risks associated with them
  • identify the triggers and contributing factors leading to restrictive practices
  • discuss actions that can prevent the use of restraint and seclusion
  • explain the effect of restraint or seclusion on consumers and staff
  • describe safe systems of work for getting assistance and back up
  • identify actions that will optimise recovery for both the consumer and staff following an incident of restraint or seclusion.

The course includes interactive activities and scenarios, and reflects the Minimising Restrictive Practices Policy Directive (PDF 158KB).

Perinatal Emergency Education Strategy

K2 Fetal monitoring

K2 Fetal monitoring training can be used as an alternative, or in addition to, OFSEPlus. This training can be used as part of the minimum education requirements of the Perinatal Emergency Education Strategy and to prepare for the Fetal Surveillance Education Program (FSEP).

K2 Fetal Monitoring Training is for all medical staff and midwives who apply and interpret cardiotocographs.

The K2 modules available include:

  • acid base and fetal physiology
  • cardiotocography
  • errors and limitations in fetal monitoring
  • antenatal cardiotocography.

K2 does not replace the FSEP study days run by The Royal Australian and New Zealand College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists (RANZCOG).

Staff can access K2 by visiting the SA Health Perinatal Emergency Education Strategy web page and locating their site contact on the ‘Training contact list’.

Newborn life support course

This course is intended for all doctors, nurses, midwives and those who may be required to offer neonatal support at the time of delivery. The course is a pre-requisite for face-to-face education programs, such as that offered via the SA Health Perinatal Emergency Education Strategy. Please note that this Newborn Life Support (NLS) course covers the basic steps in newborn resuscitation. Newborn Advanced Life Support (NALS) techniques are not covered in this course. The NALS eLearning course will be released later in 2016.

At the end of the course, you should:

  • have an understanding of the crucial role of initiating effective respiration (breathing) to achieve successful cardiopulmonary transition at birth
  • recognise that the first two to three minutes is the most important time to evaluate and act to ensure this transition
  • have an understanding of the concepts of primary and secondary apnoea
  • understand how and when to use the Newborn Life Support algorithm, including:
    • anticipating problems before birth
    • recognising the compromised newborn
    • understanding and initiating effective use of the resuscitation equipment
    • knowing when to call for help.

The course will take approximately 1 hour to complete.

Newborn Advanced Life Support (NALS) course

This course is intended for all doctors, advance practice nurses, midwives and those who may be required to offer advanced neonatal support at the time of birth. This includes members of code blue neonatal response teams.

Completion of the Newborn Life Support (NLS) eLearning course and NLS face-to-face session are pre-requisites for this NALS course. The NALS eLearning course is a pre-requisite for face to face NALS education programs such as those offered via the SA Health Perinatal Emergency Education Strategy.

At the end of this course you should be able to:

  • Implement escalating life support for newborns not responding to steps carried out in Newborn Life Support (NLS)
  • Apply the Newborn Advanced Life Support (NALS) algorithm
  • Understand when and how to use each of the following devices or techniques:
    • Laryngeal Mask Airway (LMA)
    • Endotracheal intubation (ETT)
    • Umbilical Vein Catheterisation (UVC)
    • SpO2 and ECG (Electrocardiography) monitoring
    • Needle aspiration of pneumothorax
  • Understand the importance and principles of documentation and teamwork in relation to NALS

This course will take approximately 2 hours to complete.

Partnering with consumers and community course

Partnering with Consumers and Community eLearning course is an introduction to all staff about their role in providing safe, quality health care, and engaging with consumers in their care and treatment.

The course enables staff to reflect on their role when partnering with consumers, to make sure:

  • consumers are cared for in a way that is patient and consumer centred, so that they are engaged as partners in their own care, to the extent that they chose
  • health care organisations work in partnership with the consumers and the community to shape, design, deliver, measure and evaluate the organisation and its services.

Patient incident management and open disclosure course

This course is an introduction for all staff (clinical and non-clinical) who are involved in the delivery of services and care to patients and consumers. In your role, you may identify a patient incident and be required to report it and participate in open disclosure with a patient, family or carers.

The course aligns with National Safety and Quality Health Service Standards 1 to 10 (PDF 1.6KB).

By the end of this course you will be able to:

  • explain what is patient incident management and open disclosure
  • describe why patient incident management and open disclosure in health care is important
  • outline how to use patient incident management and open disclosure processes in practice
  • examine the benefits of using patient incident management and open disclosure for patients, consumers and staff.

The course will take approximately 30 minutes to complete.

Resuscitation planning – 7 step pathway course

This course introduces the Resuscitation Plan – 7 Step Pathway, and guides staff in these roles to reflect on how they can ensure safe and high-quality resuscitation planning and end-of-life care that is patient and family/carer centred and, whenever possible, aligned with the values, needs and wishes of the individual and their family/carer.

This is an online course for:

  • health-care workers providing direct clinical care to patients
  • non-clinical workforce
  • health-care workers with responsibility for quality improvement
  • educators of nursing and medical staff
  • health service managers.

A further course, Putting the Resuscitation Plan – 7 Step Pathway into Practice, is available to health care workers providing direct clinical care to patients, and uses case studies to explore how to successfully put the Resuscitation Plan – 7 Step Pathway into practice.

The course aligns with National Safety and Quality Health Service Standards 1, 2, 5, 6 and 8.

The course is designed to take around 45 minutes to complete.

Safe use of personal protective equipment (PPE) course

This course is intended for staff that are required to use PPE during their work activities to prevent the spread of infection to patients and staff. The course enables learners to recognise the importance of wearing appropriate PPE correctly, when it is required during clinical practice, and its safe removal.

What is safety and quality? course

This course is an introduction to all staff on safety and quality and the role that we all have in providing safe, quality healthcare. It also introduces the Australian Safety and Quality Framework for Health Care, created by the Australian Commission on Safety and Quality in Healthcare. This course takes 15 minutes to complete.

Contact

Safety and Quality Unit
Email: Health.DHWClinicalGovernanceEnquiries@sa.gov.au