Archives of Hellenic Medicine

Last update:

06-Jul-2023

Arch Hellen Med, 40(4), July-August 2023, 549-558

SPECIAL ARTICLE

The Australian clinical governance framework as a guide to quality assurance in healthcare in Greece

A. Petris,^1,4 I. Apostolakis,^2,4 P. Sarafis^3,4
¹Unit of Blood Bank, "Evaggelistria" Panarcadian General Hospital of Tripoli, Tripoli,
²School of Medicine, National and Kapodistrian University of Athens, Athens,
³General Department, University of Thessaly, Lamia,
⁴School of Social Sciences, Hellenic Open University, Patra, Greece

Advanced health care systems internationally give priority to assuring the quality and safety of the health care services they provide. Clinical governance (CG) includes an institutional and operational framework that refers to the structures, systems and actions aimed in this direction. The Australian model of CG is highlighted and described by the international literature review. It is found that there is no structured strategy to assure safety and quality in health care in Greece. This article attempts to propose a CG framework in our country based on the Australian model. Structural-institutional changes concerning the Ministries of Health, Finance and Education are proposed, as well as organizational changes referring to hospital structures and educational institutions.

Key words: Clinical governance Australia-Greece, Clinical governance pillars, Healthcare indicators, Quality in healthcare, Quality standards.