Showcase your work towards improved health outcomes for your patient population through the Cornerstone Continuous Quality Improvement (CQI) quality module. 

The Continuous Quality Improvement (CQI) module builds on the quality assurance concepts in Foundation Programme, adding value and strength to general practices. 

“The Cornerstone Continuous Quality Improvement (CQI) module allows practices to demonstrate their work towards improving health outcomes. The CQI module asks practices to identify an area of improvement in their work and apply a structured quality improvement model (such as a PDSA cycle) to track progress.  Although incorporating equity into the CQI project is important, it is not the main focus.  A successful outcome to the CQI project is not a requirement, as capturing the lessons learnt for future efforts and similar work is of ongoing value. The last step is to compile a final report that summarises your initiative, the quality improvement processes used and your findings. 

The CQI module is one of the Quality programme’s core Cornerstone Bronze modules and is a structured, practice-wide approach, enabling evidence-based decision making and ‘best practice’ in primary health care. 


Benefits of the CQI module 

  • Showcase your practices work towards improved health outcomes
  • Creates confidence and skill within the team to repeat and redefine each quality improvement process and apply it to areas where practice data is signaling the need
  • Rewarding and empowering for practice staff as a healthier and happier patient population emerges
  • Evolves improved service delivery, safety and efficiency evolves. 
A successful outcome to the CQI project is not a requirement, as capturing the lessons learnt for future efforts and similar work is of ongoing value. 
 
The Ministry of Health emphasises that New Zealand’s health system performs well but can and must do better and that it is important to get the best value we can from services, so that New Zealanders receive high-quality services that are affordable and sustainable.
 
The Ministry of Health endorses the use of New Zealand Triple Aim framework in continuous quality improvement, which provides a systems approach to improving services. It can help to balance goals across the three aims of the framework:

  1. Improved quality, safety and experience of care
  2. Improved health and equity for all populations
  3. Best value for public health system resources

Requirements of the CQI module

  • Incorporate elements of the New Zealand Triple Aim
  • Identify inequities
  • A structured approach (for example, at least one complete Plan-Do -Study-Act (PDSA) cycle and a plan for the second that outlines the improvements for the next cycle)
  • The use of tools such as charts, maps and diagrams
  • Collaboration of the practice team from the start to finish, including engaging with patients, whānau/family and any other organisations involved in the process 
  • Findings that can be shared with the practice team and wider stakeholders
  • An initiative that can potentially be scaled up 
  • Health outcomes are measured (or supported by research if a process initiative)
  • Data/evidence of sufficient quality 
  • Submission of a final report
     
To ensure the suitability of your initiative, the College has designed this CQI pre-assessment form for practices to share with their College-endorsed CQI assessor prior to undertaking the CQI project.