Current Topic

Change

Induction and Orientation

• Use of HealthPathways added to induction checklists for clinical team and locums.
• It is best practice to ensure all clinicians are aware of how to access the local, evidence-based guidance in HealthPathways. This is particularly the case for locums and clinicians new to New Zealand, who may not be familiar with HealthPathways or know how to access it.

Complaints

• Sentence added about ensuring staff involved in a complaint have access to support.
• Sentence added saying that the practice encourages staff involved in a serious complaint to seek advice from their professional body.
• More links to related policies added: Stress and Well-being, Clinical Governance, and Patient Rights.

Complaints Procedure

• Additional details added to make the procedure easier to follow.
• New step added: Try to resolve the complaint. This information was previously included in step 1.
• Drop-box added to detail when you need to inform PHO about a complaint.

Triage

• Triage for Urgent Care practices has been reviewed and edited to ensure it aligns with the NZ Urgent Care Standard.
• The layout of the page now reflects the generic Triage page, but with more information relating to urgent care.
• Triage for all other practices now combines Triage and Triage Protocol.
• The sections "If a patient is in obvious distress" and "Observing patients and wait times" have been combined into one section about monitoring waiting patients and wait times.
• A short section regarding training non-clinical staff for the annual clinical emergency drill has been added.

Triage Protocol

• Page removed. Combined with Triage.

Child Protection

• Page undergoing review in consultation with Safeguarding Children. Note that this policy will continue to evolve as we go through the review process.
• Additional legislation added to policy section.
• New section: Allegations against staff members. Practices can tell us who they would report allegations against staff members to, and who they would report to if the allegation involved that person.
• New resource from Child Matters listing indicators of child abuse.
• Expanded guidance about how to respond to disclosures.
• Link to Report of Concern form added.

Clinical Records

• Renamed following feedback, and to prevent confusion with the newly named New Patient Records.

New Patient Records

• Renamed following feedback, previously was called Receiving Patient Records.

Electronic Communication

• This page has been updated to better outline regulations and guidelines for communicating electronically with patients. Previously called Texting Patients.

Foundation Training

• Open Disclosure LearnOnline training course removed as no longer available.
• We are not currently aware of any other course, this page will be updated when one is available.

Open Disclosure

• Added harm and near miss to the policy statement about open disclosure.
• Added that the meeting with a patient should be face to face if possible.
• Amended information about inviting the patient to talk about their experience to make it easier to follow.

Repeat Prescriptions

• New sentence added to make it clear that repeat prescription request may be authorised by either the original prescriber or another prescriber at the practice.
• Sentence about psychotropics and benzodiazepines removed – practices who want to add information about specific medications should add this to their Repeat Prescribing Guidelines document.
• Policy statement about equitable access to medications updated to include specific measures to increase adherence for groups at risk of inequities, such as Māori. Practices can amend this sentence, however it is a requirement for Foundation indicator 9.1. We are still identifying the best way to include this information in the policy, and it may be updated further as our understanding increases.
• Step in the repeat prescribing procedure about setting a reminder to follow up with Māori in six weeks removed. Replaced with optional sentence about setting a reminder for patients at risk of non collection or non adherence.

Mandatory and Discretionary Reporting

• Following feedback, changed the link for reporting Sexual misconduct the registrars of the responsible authorities.
• Added a link to a Ministry of Health list of registrars anywhere where reporting to the registrar of responsible authorities is recommended, and a link to the Ministry of Health's information on contacting the medical officer for each district.
• Added links to information on the Nursing Council of New Zealand site to the Dismissal or resignation due to incompetence, Health Practitioner unable to perform or incompetent, and the Sexual misconduct drop downs.