Introduction This consultation Regulation Impact Statement (RIS) is the final stage of an extensive consultation process undertaken by the Australian Commission on Safety and Quality in Health Care (the Commission) to review the National Safety and Quality Health Service (NSQHS) Standards.1 The NSQHS Standards were designed to protect the public from harm and to improve the quality of health care for consumers. They were endorsed by Australian health ministers in 2011 and implemented in health service organisations. The NSQHS Standards are applicable to all health service organisations. Australian, state and territory governments expect all hospitals and day procedure services to comply with the requirements of the NSQHS Standards. Therefore, major changes to the NSQHS Standards must be made in accordance with the RIS requirements of the Council of Australian Governments (COAG). The COAG process for preparing and submitting a RIS comprises two stages. The stage involves consultation on the costs and benefits of the proposed changes; this is known as a consultation RIS. The second stage involves preparation of a recommendation report, or decision RIS, that includes an analysis of comments from the consultation RIS, as well as evidence on the costs and benefits of the proposed changes. The decision RIS, along with the final draft version 2 of the NSQHS Standards, will be submitted to health ministers for their consideration. Information in this report is based on the specifications of the Office of Best Practice Regulation. Version 1 of the NSQHS Standards Implementation of version 1 of the Standards has produced promising results, and generated widespread engagement and support among health service organisations. In implementing the NSQHS Standards, health service organisations have put in place safety and quality systems to ensure that the described standards of care are met. State and territory health departments have contributed significant resources to support health service organisations in implementing the NSQHS Standards, by developing policy updates; and aligning data collections, reports and performance agreements in keeping with the requirements of the NSQHS Standards. Version 1 of the NSQHS Standards was drafted between 2008 and 2010. Since then, the evidence base and practice models of care have developed further. In addition, research conducted by the Commission and others has identified a number of emerging safety and quality issues that are not addressed in version 1 of the NSQHS Standards. To continue to drive improvements in the safety and quality of health care, the Commission began a review of the NSQHS Standards in 2015. As part of this review, and following national consultation, the Commission developed a draft
Introduction This consultation Regulation Impact Statement (RIS) is the final stage of an extensive consultation process undertaken by the Australian Commission on Safety and Quality in Health Care (the Commission) to review the National Safety and Quality Health Service (NSQHS) Standards.1 The NSQHS Standards were designed to protect the public from harm and to improve the quality of health care for consumers. They were endorsed by Australian health ministers in 2011 and implemented in health service organisations. The NSQHS Standards are applicable to all health service organisations. Australian, state and territory governments expect all hospitals and day procedure services to comply with the requirements of the NSQHS Standards. Therefore, major changes to the NSQHS Standards must be made in accordance with the RIS requirements of the Council of Australian Governments (COAG). The COAG process for preparing and submitting a RIS comprises two stages. The stage involves consultation on the costs and benefits of the proposed changes; this is known as a consultation RIS. The second stage involves preparation of a recommendation report, or decision RIS, that includes an analysis of comments from the consultation RIS, as well as evidence on the costs and benefits of the proposed changes. The decision RIS, along with the final draft version 2 of the NSQHS Standards, will be submitted to health ministers for their consideration. Information in this report is based on the specifications of the Office of Best Practice Regulation. Version 1 of the NSQHS Standards Implementation of version 1 of the Standards has produced promising results, and generated widespread engagement and support among health service organisations. In implementing the NSQHS Standards, health service organisations have put in place safety and quality systems to ensure that the described standards of care are met. State and territory health departments have contributed significant resources to support health service organisations in implementing the NSQHS Standards, by developing policy updates; and aligning data collections, reports and performance agreements in keeping with the requirements of the NSQHS Standards. Version 1 of the NSQHS Standards was drafted between 2008 and 2010. Since then, the evidence base and practice models of care have developed further. In addition, research conducted by the Commission and others has identified a number of emerging safety and quality issues that are not addressed in version 1 of the NSQHS Standards. To continue to drive improvements in the safety and quality of health care, the Commission began a review of the NSQHS Standards in 2015. As part of this review, and following national consultation, the Commission developed a draft