The purpose of this study was to trial key activity indicators in 10 medical wards across 4 hospitals in an Australian health service, and to compare results pre and post implementation of a co-designed intervention.
An expert stakeholder group, consisting of consumer representatives, clinicians and managers, reviewed the 23 internationally published indicators and collectively adapted these for local context and practicality of data collection. Twenty-six indicators were selected for final inclusion, with targets set for key indicators. Audits were conducted on the participating wards before (2022) and after (2024) implementation of i) a health service policy promoting maintenance and restoration of physical function in inpatients, and ii) widespread staff education.
Improvements were observed in several indicators such as the proportion of patients who sat out of bed during the day. For this indicator, 7 out of 10 wards reached the pre-specified target of 80% in 2024 compared to 3 out of 9 wards in 2022. Opportunities for improvement were identified for indicators related to equipment, storage, and staff promotion of physical activity.
Evaluation of quality indicators for activity has highlighted successes as well as areas for future improvements within the health service. The expert stakeholder group is currently refining these indicators to identify a core set for future use to be included as part of standard care.
Physiotherapists have a key role in promoting and supporting the maintenance and restoration of physical function in hospital inpatients. Development of a broad, multi-professional stakeholder group and monitoring of key indicators related to patient activity, increases organisational awareness about functional decline and highlights opportunities for quality initiatives to improve patient care.
quality indicators
medical inpatients
