Improving quality, efficiency and safety through standardisation: experience from an endoscopy unit

Abstract

A series of standardised postal patient-information and informed-consent booklets were developed and implemented as part of a quality-improvement initiative in a busy endoscopy unit at a private hospital in Dublin, Ireland. The booklets were designed to improve the quality, clarity and consistency of patient information delivered before a procedure, which would reduce patient anxiety, ensure a safe procedure and make obtaining patients' valid informed consent faster and more reliable. The booklets were developed in consultation with other stakeholders, and an audit was conducted before and after introduction of the booklet to measure its impact. The initiative resulted in improved patient experience and outcomes, and it was repeated at other nearby hospitals and made available to patients attending on an open-access basis.