Understanding accreditation standards in general practice – a qualitative study
Abstract Background Accreditation is a widely adopted tool for quality control and quality improvement in health care, which has increasingly been employed for general practice. However, there is lack of knowledge of how accreditation is received and experienced by health professionals in general pr...
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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BMC
2019-01-01
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| Series: | BMC Family Practice |
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| Online Access: | http://link.springer.com/article/10.1186/s12875-019-0910-2 |
| _version_ | 1818247566105509888 |
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| author | Tina Drud Due Thorkil Thorsen Marius Brostrøm Kousgaard |
| author_facet | Tina Drud Due Thorkil Thorsen Marius Brostrøm Kousgaard |
| author_sort | Tina Drud Due |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Abstract Background Accreditation is a widely adopted tool for quality control and quality improvement in health care, which has increasingly been employed for general practice. However, there is lack of knowledge of how accreditation is received and experienced by health professionals in general practice. This study explores how general practitioners (GPs) and their staff experienced the comprehensibility of accreditation standards and how they worked to increase their understanding of the standards. The study was conducted in Denmark where accreditation was mandatory in general practice from 2016 to 2018. Methods The study consists of qualitative interviews with general practitioners and staff from 11 general practices that were strategically sampled among practices set to receive their survey visit in 2017. Participants were interviewed twice; once during the preparation phase and once after the survey visit. GPs and staff were interviewed separately. The interviews were analysed inductively using thematic analysis. Results Understanding the requirements of the accreditation standards was a major challenge for the professionals when preparing for the accreditation survey visit. The participants attempted to increase their understanding of the standards in several ways including the use of regional support options and seeking out experts and colleagues. However, participants had mixed experiences with the various support options and many found the sense making work frustrating and time consuming. Conclusion The results point to the importance of considering the level of specificity in accreditation standards and how to ensure an organisational set-up that can offer appropriate support to primary care clinics in terms of understanding what is required to meet the standards. |
| first_indexed | 2024-12-12T15:06:44Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-9704fb988c48442a9589dd9c41564479 |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 1471-2296 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-12-12T15:06:44Z |
| publishDate | 2019-01-01 |
| publisher | BMC |
| record_format | Article |
| series | BMC Family Practice |
| spelling | doaj.art-9704fb988c48442a9589dd9c415644792022-12-22T00:20:43ZengBMCBMC Family Practice1471-22962019-01-0120111210.1186/s12875-019-0910-2Understanding accreditation standards in general practice – a qualitative studyTina Drud Due0Thorkil Thorsen1Marius Brostrøm Kousgaard2The Research Unit for General Practice and Section of General Practice, Department of Public Health, University of CopenhagenThe Research Unit for General Practice and Section of General Practice, Department of Public Health, University of CopenhagenThe Research Unit for General Practice and Section of General Practice, Department of Public Health, University of CopenhagenAbstract Background Accreditation is a widely adopted tool for quality control and quality improvement in health care, which has increasingly been employed for general practice. However, there is lack of knowledge of how accreditation is received and experienced by health professionals in general practice. This study explores how general practitioners (GPs) and their staff experienced the comprehensibility of accreditation standards and how they worked to increase their understanding of the standards. The study was conducted in Denmark where accreditation was mandatory in general practice from 2016 to 2018. Methods The study consists of qualitative interviews with general practitioners and staff from 11 general practices that were strategically sampled among practices set to receive their survey visit in 2017. Participants were interviewed twice; once during the preparation phase and once after the survey visit. GPs and staff were interviewed separately. The interviews were analysed inductively using thematic analysis. Results Understanding the requirements of the accreditation standards was a major challenge for the professionals when preparing for the accreditation survey visit. The participants attempted to increase their understanding of the standards in several ways including the use of regional support options and seeking out experts and colleagues. However, participants had mixed experiences with the various support options and many found the sense making work frustrating and time consuming. Conclusion The results point to the importance of considering the level of specificity in accreditation standards and how to ensure an organisational set-up that can offer appropriate support to primary care clinics in terms of understanding what is required to meet the standards.http://link.springer.com/article/10.1186/s12875-019-0910-2AccreditationGeneral practicePrimary careQuality standardsQualitative study |
| spellingShingle | Tina Drud Due Thorkil Thorsen Marius Brostrøm Kousgaard Understanding accreditation standards in general practice – a qualitative study BMC Family Practice Accreditation General practice Primary care Quality standards Qualitative study |
| title | Understanding accreditation standards in general practice – a qualitative study |
| title_full | Understanding accreditation standards in general practice – a qualitative study |
| title_fullStr | Understanding accreditation standards in general practice – a qualitative study |
| title_full_unstemmed | Understanding accreditation standards in general practice – a qualitative study |
| title_short | Understanding accreditation standards in general practice – a qualitative study |
| title_sort | understanding accreditation standards in general practice a qualitative study |
| topic | Accreditation General practice Primary care Quality standards Qualitative study |
| url | http://link.springer.com/article/10.1186/s12875-019-0910-2 |
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