Course Descriptions – QIPS

• Describe the objectives and expectations of the MSc Program
• Explain a conceptual framework for improvement
• Apply this conceptual framework to a personal improvement plan
• Appreciate structural contributors to system quality
• Describe important features of measurement in improvement
• Understand the role of human factors in improvement
• Apply small scale testing principles to improvement projects
• Analyze factors associated with successful implementation
• Critically appraise  improvement studies
• Demonstrate skills in persuasive presentations
• Integrate all of these concepts to an improvement project protocol

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• Describe the history and evolution of quality improvement science.
• Critique a quality improvement project to identify the presence or absence of factors that contribute to a success, including strategies for influencing and sustaining change at the micro-system level.
• Describe and apply the principles of Lean methodology and distinguish the conditions under which Lean, Six Sigma and the Model for Improvement are most applicable.
• Apply basic improvement tools to a quality improvement project, and demonstrate an ability to distinguish the use of specific tools to address different types of improvement challenges.
• Summarize key principles for measurement for improvement, and develop and interpret statistical methods used to display data.
• Discuss and experiment with different strategies for generating innovative ideas for improvement.
• Integrate fundamental principles, methods and tools for quality improvement in order to design and implement a quality improvement project.
• Analyze the strengths and weaknesses of common evaluation designs for quality improvement  initiatives through application of the rules of evidence to the published literature.

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• Define key educational terms used in health professions education
• List the core patient safety and quality improvement competencies for all health professionals
• Apply 5 different teaching methods to teach patient safety and quality improvement
• Describe effective strategies to supervise others in their quality improvement work
• Create an educational plan that outlines the key components of a patient safety or quality improvement curriculum

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• To describe the impetus for improving safety in health care
• To describe fundamental issues in human error and systems thinking related to improving patient safety
• To describe lessons from other high reliability organizations, including the importance teamwork and culture
• To analyse an evidence based approach to common healthcare safety problems
• To describe key elements of organizations that support safer care
• To analyse quantitative and qualitative measurement strategies in patient safety
• To identify strategies to gather patient perspectives to expand their role in supporting effective outcomes of care
• To describe and choose strategies to identify, analyze and address patient safety issues

This course will utilize some of the principles learned in Quality Improvements Methods course to illustrate patient safety issues (e.g. Analysis of Statistical Process Control charts).

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• Identify theoretical concepts of improvement science relevant to their workplace projects;
• Appraise and apply research methods that are appropriate for assessing the impact or implementation of their workplace projects;
• Demonstrate effective communication skills in the presentation of the projects;
• Identify the elements of an effective plan for communicating the project to the sponsoring organization;
• Select and apply methods for assessing the literature related the workplace project that assesses the strength and weaknesses of the interventions proposed.
• Develop the skills needed to write an article suitable for publication that describes the project

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• Evaluate whether or not research ethics board (REB) approval is required for a project;
• Explain what to include in the REB application;
• Apply effective library search strategies and demonstrate an ability to search databases and cite sources;
• Evaluate and critique the quality and safety literature related to a specific improvement issue in a specific environment;
• Measure early on in a project, the relevant sample size considerations, and how measurement can help decide readiness for a more formal evaluation of improvement
• Select appropriate qualitative method to address specific quality improvement question
• Select appropriate interventional (experimental) or observational (qualitative, quantitative or mixed methods) study designs to address specific research questions
• Use sound quantitative and/or qualitative evidence to defend or evaluate a healthcare quality improvement or safety projects
• Explain the theory behind qualitative analytic methods
• Choose appropriate strategies for analyzing and presenting qualitative and quantitative data
• Describe the considerations involved in rigorous qualitative and quantitative analysis
• Use appropriate analytical methods to clarify associations between variables and to delineate causal inferences.
• Distinguish Improvement Science & Planned Experimentation Objectives
• Distinguish Parametric and Nonparametric Procedures
• Demonstrate skills in effective written communication
• Understand how to advance the QI/PS research agenda through a program that interconnects controlled and representative methodologies to contribute to theoretically sound evidence and practical applications

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• A self-assessment of personal leadership skills;
• Change management theories and application; overcoming resistance to change and modeling the environment for change;
• Leadership strategies using cases and role playing exercises;
• Distributive leadership for embedding and sustaining improvement and safety into practice at all levels;
• Negotiation, coaching and conflict management;
• Physician and other stakeholder engagement;
• Strategic alignment of quality from the top and from the bottom;
• Definition of knowledge translation and its application to quality improvement and safety.

• Demonstrate the integration of knowledge and application of different conceptual frameworks for basic leadership, change management, systems theories, and knowledge translation theories and competencies required to improve quality and enhance patient safety at the clinicalmicrosystem level linked to organizational (meso) and system (macro) levels.
• Describe their personal leadership style and explain how it relates to leading and managing change in health care at the clinical microsystem/team level.
• Identify key leadership, change management (negotiation, coaching and conflict management skills) and knowledge translation strategies for creating and sustaining practice/process change and innovation, including the senior leadership practices required to support and enable microsystem level improvement.
• Understand strategic alignment of the quality and safety agenda with other key organizational priorities and initiatives.
• Describe various strategies for engaging physicians and other stakeholders to improve quality improvement and patient safety.
• Identify the characteristics of high performing healthcare systems and judge the effectiveness of current systems in adopting and implementing these strategies

This course will utilize some of the principles learned in Quality Improvements Methods course to illustrate patient safety issues (e.g. Analysis of Statistical Process Control charts).

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• Analyze the critical skills and knowledge that leaders need to lead change in healthcare organizations
• Assess the strategies leaders use to create effective quality and patient safety strategies in organizations and broader systems
• Understand how organizations need to assess risk and deal with organizational failures
• Identify the strategies needed for effective governance of quality and patient safety and appraise their implementation in various settings
• Explain the impact that engaging patients can have on improvement strategies and assess the approaches used to engage patients in these efforts
• Appraise the role of electronic health records in large scale improvement
• Assess the role of quality councils, Ministries of Health and other support groups in monitoring and guiding system change
• Identify the characteristics of high performing healthcare systems and judge the effectiveness of current systems in adopting and implementing these strategies

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• The risk management process (i.e. identification, assessment, mitigation), methods for identifying and ranking top clinical and other risks using data from a range of patient safety and risk management sources
• Strategies for integrating organizational risk management, quality improvement and patient safety activities;
• Methods for identifying, managing and investigating critical incidents, and for implementing and sustaining effective recommendations for improvement;
• Principles and practices for disclosure of adverse events;
• Relevant legislation and regulations (e.g. the public hospital act, disclosure, apology, consent and capacity, etc);
• The rationale and legal protection for quality assurance activities;
• The medical-legal claims process and the effect of claims on patient safety and quality;
• The role of professional colleges in ensuring quality care, and potential issue related to the systems approach to patient safety and implementation of a just culture;
• The role of the coroner in patient safety;
• The role of accreditation in ensuring quality and in influencing organizational priority setting in patient safety and quality.
• The course will include didactic pre-reading, lectures from leading experts, group discussion, and in-class simulations.

• Identify and assess the range of clinical and non-clinical risks within a healthcare organization and apply a structured methodology to identify high priority risks requiring leadership and governance attention;
• Recognize the linkage between risk management, quality improvement and patient safety functions and understand how they can be effectively integrated within an organization;
• Categorize the multiple sources of risk management data (including incident reports, critical incident investigations, patient complaints, medical legal claims, M&M reviews, alerts, audits, etc) and outline strategies to obtain actionable information from data mining efforts;
• Recognize the significant laws and regulations which govern healthcare quality and safety;
• Understand the unique relationship between physicians and hospitals and describe the important role of credentialing of healthcare professionals in ensuring quality care;
• Formulate arguments both for and against the protection of quality assurance information in healthcare;
• Understand the civil litigation process and factors which may contribute to an adverse event proceeding to a medical malpractice claim;
• Describe the challenges associated with identifying and managing critical incidents and outline the elements of successful investigation and follow up;
• Outline the rationale for disclosure of adverse events to patients, debate the evidence regarding the effect of disclosure on medical malpractice claims, and analyze and critique disclosure skills;
• Understand the mandate and activities of the coroner’s office, professional colleges, and accreditation, and debate their role in advancing healthcare quality and safety.

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1. The Preceptor – a senior health services executive who acts as a mentor at the placement site
2. The Program Director/ Program Administrator – who arranges and coordinates the practicum
3. The Student

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• Explain the meaning of a variety of key concepts and frameworks in HF practice and research
• Describe the influence of HF on health patient safety issues
• Conduct a heuristic evaluation and usability test to improve an intervention design

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• Distinguish between adaptive and technical work and explain what each requires to make progress (C4 – Analysis)
• Indicate the difference between the role of authority and the exercise of leadership (C6 – Evaluation)
• Perceive that there is a productive range of tension to make progress on leadership challenges (C5- Synthesis)
• Identify the sources of resistance and develop strategies to manage them (C4- Analysis)
• Identify the polarities within adaptive work and generate a process for managing them (C5 – Synthesis)
• Display an ability to continually reflect in action (A5 – Characterization by a Value or Value Complex)
• Relate the practices to current healthcare challenges (C6 – Evaluate)
• Value the need to thrive while leading adaptive change (A3 – Valuing)

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