Key quality and safety results

When you are a patient at a Ramsay Health Care facility, you can expect professional, evidence-based care delivered in a safe and supportive environment. We aim to help you feel informed and confident about what to expect during your hospital stay.

We believe in partnering with patients so they can take an active role in planning and making decisions about their treatment. If you have questions about your care, we encourage you to raise them with your care team.

We prioritise patient health and safety in every aspect of care. Our teams regularly assess performance against national standards and focus on continuous improvement. We monitor key clinical indicators to identify opportunities to reduce risk and strengthen the quality of care. We also focus on specific risk areas, as outlined on this page.

Open disclosure 

Ramsay Health Care makes every effort to minimise risk to our patients. Unfortunately, incidents can occur – and when they do, we investigate and discuss with you what has happened. This is called open disclosure. Open disclosure is an honest discussion with patients and families if an incident results in unintended harm. It is an investigation of what happened and, where possible, taking action to prevent similar incidents in the future.  

 Download this pamphlet to learn more about open disclosure. 

What Ramsay Health Care does to reduce your infection risk 

Ramsay Health Care has programs to detect and prevent infections that are common within health care environments. We have signs to encourage visitors to Ramsay hospitals to use antiseptic hand rub, which is located throughout our facilities.

What you can do to reduce your infection risk 

There are several ways you can assist in preventing infections:  

• Always wash your hands after using the toilet, bedpan or a commode.

• Wash or clean your hands before eating.

• Don’t be concerned about asking your doctor or staff caring for you if they have performed hand hygiene.

• Avoid touching your wound or any devices you might have (for example, fluid or drain tubes).

• Tell our staff if your wound or the areas around any lines or tubes become red, swollen or painful.

• Discourage visitors who might be feeling unwell.

• Stop smoking before any surgery, as smoking increases your risk of infection.  

One of the most effective ways to prevent infection spreading among patients is for all health professionals to perform hand hygiene. At Ramsay, hand hygiene is conducted in accordance with the Five Moments framework. Five Moments is a simple method for remembering some of the key times a health care worker’s hands should be cleaned: before touching a patient, before a procedure, after a procedure, after touching a patient and after touching a patient’s environment. 

Ramsay Health Care participates in the national hand hygiene strategy through the Australian Commission on Safety and Quality in Health Care (ACSQHC). We conduct hand hygiene audits three times per year. Hand hygiene compliance is reported as the percentage of correct moments from all observed moments. 

Staphylococcus aureus bacteraemia (SAB) or blood stream infections are a risk to patients both in the hospitals and the community. Infection prevention and control (IPC) programs are designed to minimise risk of these infections occurring as part of standard precautions and aseptic technique practices. Health care facilities actively monitor for SABs as part of the facility and organisations infection surveillance programs.  

The rate of SAB infections in a hospital is an indicator of the effectiveness of its infection prevention and control program. It is a key indicator for acute hospitals and is reported nationally. 

The SAB indicator is reported as a rate of infections per 10,000 patient days. It is calculated by dividing the number of SAB infections that meet the indicator criteria by the number of patient days, then multiplying that figure by 10,000. 

What Ramsay Health Care does to reduce your falls risk 

We use evidence-based strategies to reduce the risk of falls and monitor falls data across all hospitals to guide improvement. Falls are monitored both by the total number of falls in our hospitals (shown as Inpatient falls) and the number of falls that result in a serious outcome such as a fracture or closed head injury (shown as Serious falls).

Our strategies to prevent falls include: targeted hourly rounding of patients identified as being at high risk of falling, ensuring that call bells and personal items are within patient reach, answering call bells promptly and regularly assisting patients to the toilet. In addition, Ramsay Health Care has purchased low beds, falls mats and patient alarms to further decrease the potential for any fall injury. 

What you can do to reduce your falls risk 

Falls can be a major cause of injury. We aim to reduce the risk of falls during your hospital stay, and you can support this by following some practical steps:

• Become familiar with your surroundings.
• Learn how your bed controls work and how to use the call bell – if you can't reach it, ask your nurse to move it closer.
• Ask your nurse to adjust the bed height if needed.
• Use the call bell whenever you need help.
• Wear supportive, flat, non-slip shoes – avoid walking in socks or pressure stockings.
• Keep glasses, hearing aids, and mobility aids within reach – use the call bell to ask staff for help.

Falls indicators are reported as a percentage of all patient days during the period. Ramsay Health Care participates in the Australian Council on Healthcare Standards (ACHS) Clinical Indicator Program and use their definitions for these indicators. The indicators are calculated by dividing the number of inpatient falls that meet the indicator criteria by the number of days for all patients who were admitted. 

What Ramsay Health Care does to reduce your medication risk 

Ramsay Health Care takes all medication errors very seriously. We encourage staff to report all medication errors as incidents, no matter how minor they might seem. All medication incidents are investigated and actioned. Any serious medication incidents are investigated thoroughly and monitored by Ramsay’s National Clinical Governance Unit.

In addition, Ramsay Health Care has medication administration policies and processes in place which have been developed using best practice principles. 

The Australian Commission on Safety and Quality in Health Care has introduced safety initiatives for medication administration and reconciliation and Ramsay Health Care has adopted these strategies. This includes the National Inpatient Medication Chart, which standardises the documentation on how medicines are prescribed and ordered. Ramsay’s adoption of the User-Applied Labelling of Injectable Medicines recommendations has assisted in preventing medication errors related to the wrong route, dose or medication being administered. 

What you can do to reduce your medication risk 

We encourage you to be involved in the management of your medicines. If you have any concerns or questions, please discuss them with your doctor, pharmacist or nurse. 

It is important during your stay that we know what medicines you are taking. Our doctors, pharmacists and nurses will ask you about the medications you take at home, including any complementary or alternative therapy medicines. This could include vitamins, nutritional supplements, homeopathic remedies, Chinese or Ayurvedic treatments, or traditional Aboriginal or Torres Strait Islander medicines.  

It is important you advise our staff of any allergies you have experienced or reactions to medicines you have had in the past.   

The serious medication error indicator is reported as a percentage of all patient days during the period. Ramsay Health Care participates in the Australian Council on Healthcare Standards (ACHS) Clinical Indicator Program and use their definitions for this indicator. It is calculated by dividing the number of patients who require medical intervention as a result of a medication safety incident by the number of days for all patients who were admitted. 

What Ramsay Health Care does to reduce your risk of pressure injuries

Pressure injuries are also known as pressure ulcers and can happen very quickly if you are unwell or not able to move easily. Ramsay Health Care's facilities are well-resourced with the latest equipment to assist staff in preventing pressure injuries. Patients are also risk-assessed on admission using an evidence-based tool. If a patient is found to be at higher risk of developing pressure injuries, Ramsay staff then follow a care plan, which is designed to minimise that risk. This includes inspecting the patient’s skin frequently, keeping their skin dry and managing any moisture, optimising their nutrition and hydration, moving the patient frequently and even using special pressure-relieving mattresses. 

What you can do to reduce your risk of a pressure injury 

Any form of pressure or rubbing can cause skin damage, particularly if your skin is moist or if you suffer from poor circulation or sensation. 

You can help decrease your risk by: 

• Telling a nurse if you have any pain or burning feelings in your skin.
• Keeping active however you can (for example, changing positions, turning from side to side to relieve pressure on your bottom and heels, and moving as much as possible).
• Eating a variety of foods and drinking plenty of fluids.
• Avoiding wrinkled, damp clothes and bedding – alert a staff member if you need new linens.
• Asking a staff member to raise the foot of your bed so you don’t slide down (which can put pressure on your bottom, heels and elbows).
• Sitting in a chair to eat instead of in bed (if permitted).
• Avoiding smoking, as it can reduce the blood flow to your skin. 

The pressure injury indicator is reported as a percentage of all patient days during the period. Ramsay Health Care participates in the Australian Council on Healthcare Standards (ACHS) Clinical Indicator Program and use their definitions for this indicator. It is calculated by dividing the number of patients who develop a pressure injury and meet the indicator criteria by the number of days for all patients who were admitted.