Ongoing clinical audit: proactive, not reactive

Abstract

Printed in Great Britain by Pensord Press Limited, Blackwood, Gwent NP2 2YA Ongoing clinical audit: proactive, not reactive Welcome to the first 2012 edition of the BJN stoma care supplement. We are delighted to bring this biannual supplement to you as a result of the collaboration between the BJN and the World Council of Enterotherapists (WCET). We are extremely grateful to the BJN for recognizing the significance of stoma care nursing as a specialist practice, and appreciate the timely publication of the October supplement to correspond with the yearly National WCET conference. And, there’s more...the BJN have kindly agreed to provide every WCET UK member with a free BJN stoma care supplement. We are sure you would agree that this is of huge benefit to us, as we continually recognize the need to disseminate and share information, and the importance of challenging and enhancing our field of evidence. This year is an exciting one for WCET, as the specialist forum of stoma care nurses are relaunching the organization to promote the speciality, and improve the quality of professional life to the members as well as continuing to contribute to the needs and education within Third World countries. In conjunction with the relaunch, the sharing of new and innovative ideas is a key element that identifies nurses as effective leaders and experts in their field. New ideas in clinical practice offer opportunities to improve the patient experience; however, how can we constantly ascertain new and innovative ideas ensuring best practice is upheld? One way to do this is through the process of audit. Essentially, the audit process is all about checking whether best practice is being followed and whether improvements are being made. Time and time again we hear the term best practice, but at what point can we determine what we are doing is best practice? The answer to this is with some difficulty, as ongoing research and development ultimately changes our immediate practice. Therefore, it is essential that audit becomes part of our daily practice as stoma care nurses. A good audit will identify or confirm predicaments within practice, and findings should lead to improved patient care. Clinical audit should be seen as a cyclical process that is ongoing. Many nurses become tired of this seemingly foreverending cycle, as it can be a slow process with little immediate change; ‘another box ticked’, we hear you say. Those involved can be reassured that change takes time, and that audit can only be for the good of ensuring quality patient care. Many nurses feel that audits just add to an already heavy workload, and therefore are often seen as a low priority; however, in the current climate, we need to be seen as proactive rather than reactive if changes are to be made. So, is it not better that we are a part of this changing process? WCET UK is about to embark on an audit entitled ‘Demonstrating the Value of Stoma Care Nurses’. With many stoma care nurse specialist posts currently under scrutiny, now is an ideal time for progression. It is hoped that this audit will reflect the true value of the stoma care nurse, and will be available to all WCET UK members as a means of supporting their role in practice. The information generated will focus on preventing prolonged hospital stay, preventing readmission, reducing the workload of our colleagues, and ensuring the provision of nurse-led services. We hope that you will also see the value of this audit, and become actively involved in the review of our specialist service. To end this editorial, we would like to introduce you to the five members of the sub-committee who have come together to work towards this supplement. Alison Crawshaw is Chair of the WCET, and is also a Stoma Care Nurse Specialist for Lothian NHS, Julia Williams is a Senior Lecturer in Gastrointestinal Nursing at the Burdett Institute of Gastrointestinal Nursing (Bucks New University and St Mark’s Hospital), Julie Barwell is the Clinical Nurse Specialist in Stoma Care for Hollister Ltd, with hospital and community caseloads, Alison McDonald is a Stoma Care Clinical Nurse Specialist at Ayr Hospital in Scotland, covering both surgical and urology patients, and Marion Haskin is a Clinical Educator/Practice Development Coordinator at Northumbria University. And, finally, the consultant editor of this supplement is Wendy Osborne, Charter Healthcare Nurse Manager, Ostomy Care, for Coloplast Ltd, who has over 20 years of stoma nursing experience. BJN