Quality Improvement in the Department of Medicine
Clear and Conhesive 3-year Quality Improvement Work Plan (2025-2028)
The Department of Medicine Quality Improvement (QI) Roadmap is currently focusing on a three-year time frame (2025/6 – 2027/8) on developing the culture, expertise and measurement tools needed to achieve the highest quality of patient care. The QI Roadmap builds on the success of the DOM Innovation Platform - with 27 physician led projects supported over the last 4 years. PHC Medicine members are transforming care.
We believe Quality Improvement (QI) and Innovation are two sides of the same coin; both are integral to improving outcomes, efficiency, and patient care. Innovation brings new ideas, approaches and technologies that have the potential to transform healthcare practices. On the other hand, QI focuses on refining, optimizing, and ensuring that existing processes and practices are continually improving, delivering the best possible care to patients.
This Roadmap supports the integration of a systematic approach, guided by data, to improve the quality and safety of healthcare delivery. Quality improvement focuses on care that is safe, timely, effective, efficient, equitable and patient-centered. By leveraging QI education opportunities and integrating with existing QI resources within the organization we aim to support our members to address gaps in care.
The three-year DOM QI roadmap is anchored in developing a culture that is open to change, innovation and accountability. Our members identify problems, share ideas and develop solutions.
What is Quality Improvement?
Its a framework used to systematically improve processes and systems.
What it aims to do?
Test a number of diffrent ideas/approaches to solve a problem specific to your local team.
Quality Improvement Work Plan (hover the image for detailed plan)
Will your project test different approaches to solve a problem?
Submit your idea!
2025 Department of Medicine Innovation Platform and Quality Improvement intake is now OPEN! Submit your proposal by April 15th at 11:59PM!
Please use the following link to submit your idea: Project Submission Form - Providence Health Care
We support transformational ideas within the Department of Medicine. At the same time, the DOM recognizes the current fiscal realities. To create change we must also look at what it is we no longer need, find efficiencies, and find opportunities for cost savings.
Quality Improvement - Training opportunities and Resources
Resources
What is PQI?
The Physician Quality Improvement (PQI) program at VCH and PHC is a province wide initiative and a partnership between Vancouver Coastal Health, Providence Health Care, and the Specialist Services Committee (SSC). It is designed to address gaps in quality structures relating to physician participation in quality improvement (QI) activities. The VCH/PHC PQI initiative provides sessional funding and an opportunity for physicians from VCH and PHC, as well as those working in the community (for example, at privately owned clinics) for in-depth learning about QI theory and tools, and an opportunity to conduct their own QI project. The goal of PQI aims to enhance physician QI capability and foster a continuous learning culture within the physician community.
What do we offer?
We offer three options in your path to becoming a QI champion:
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Level 1: IHI Open School and Video. IHI Open School offers…
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Level 2: Intermediate Training. Sign up and attend….
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Level 3: Advanced Cohort Training. Our flagship training…
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QI Coaching. Book an appointment to speak with our team about QI...
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Additional QI Funding Opportunities. An overview of PQI opportunities...
Who we are
We are a team with a passion to improve patient safety and the quality of care. We come from a variety of backgrounds, including medicine, nursing, economics, engineering, statistics, pharmacy, physiotherapy and physiology.
What we do
Driven by a data, we identify opportunities to improve the quality of care and experience for residents, patients, families, friends, and caregivers. Sources of information include, for example, the PHC Quality & Safety dashboards, patient and resident experience surveys, case reviews, NSQIP and Patient Safety Learning System (PSLS) reports.
Using a structured approach, we lead or support all phases and aspects of improvement initiatives, including, for example:
- Defining the problem and determining the best approach to solve it.
- Assembling a team, engaging stakeholders, and defining the project scope and timeline.
- Investigating the current state and developing a measurement plan.
- Creating work plans with clear deliverables.
- Designing and testing ideas for improvement.
- Implementing and sustaining changes.
- Spreading improvement.
- Promoting and facilitating the application of the Model for Improvement, PHC's QI Framework and QI tools such as the cause-effect diagram, process map, driver diagram, and 5 whys.
Here are some examples of initiatives the QI Team has supported: QI Projects
We also deliver a training program, the Quality Improvement Challenge (QI Challenge) for all PHC staff and providers interested in gaining introductory QI knowledge and skill to make lasting improvement in their work environment. We also collaborate with the VCH/PHC Physician Led Quality Improvement (PLQI) training program to support physicians in their QI projects.
nsuring PHC can demonstrate compliance with Accreditation Canada Standards is also part of our core work. PHC was granted 'Exemplary' Standing in 2013, 2017 and 2022.
You must be connected to the PHC network to access this resources:
The Institute for Healthcare Improvement (IHI) is a leading, globally recognized not-for-profit health care improvement organization that has been applying evidence-based quality improvement methods to meet current and future health care challenges for more than 30 years.
IHI provides millions of people in health care with methods, tools, and resources to make care better, safer, and more equitable; convenes experts to enable knowledge sharing and peer-learning; and advises health systems and hospitals of all sizes in improving their systems and outcomes at scale.
Department of Medicine Members project completed via the Providence Health Care and the Specialist Services Committee (SSC), through the Physician Quality Improvement (PQI) program:
Dr. Wendy Davis - Hematology - Reduce patient time spent on transfusion care
Dr. Keeva Lupton - Geriatric Medicine - Improving Geriatric Inpatient Care: Reducing Catherization Duration on the St Paul’s Hospital ACE Unit
Dr. Chipman Taylor Drury- Internal Medicine - Reducing Acute Pulmonary Embolism (PE) and Hospital Stays at St Paul’s Hospital
Dr. Santabhanu Chakrabharti - Cardiology - Promoting Physician Well-Being: Addressing Burnout in St Paul’s Hospital Cardiology Division
Dr. Chipman Taylor-Drury - Internal Medicine - to reduce acute pulmonary embolism hospital admissions by 50% and length of stay by 2 days
Dr. Julia MacIsaac - Addiction Medicine - Improving rates of screening for sexually transmitted and blood borne infections among patients initiating care at the Rapid Access Addictions Clinic
Dr. Tony Wan - Internal Medicine - DVT Pathway - Turning Patient Care Upside Down
Dr. Sabrina Gill - Medicine - Improve access to osteoporosis assessment and care post hip fracture
Dr. Ken Kaila - Critical Care Medicine - Improve data collection of pain, agitation, and delirium in Cardiac ICU
Dr. Robert Enns - Gastroenterology - Endoscopic Complication Assessment St Paul’s Hospital (ECAP)
Dr. Queenie Dinh - Infectious Diseases - Improve Outpatient Parenteral Antibiotic Therapy (OPAT) attendance rates through different possible interventions
Dr. Ken Kaila - Critical Care Medicine - Improve data collection of pain, agitation, and delirium in Cardiac ICU
Dr. Evan Kwong - Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation - Improving access to inpatient stroke rehabilitation at Holy Family Hospital
Dr. Ruth MacRedmond - Critical Care Medicine - Improve advanced care planning through the use/adaptation of the Serious Illness Conversation Guide
Meet our Working Group
Dr. Kristine Chapman
Dr. Anita Palepu
Theresa McElroy
Dr. Tony Wan
David Brown
