Abstract
Rationale, aims and objective Clinical audit plays a fundamental role in
improving the quality of patient care and hence, is considered a
cornerstone of clinical governance. This study evaluates clinical audit
as a newly introduced quality improvement tool in the healthcare system
of the Gaza Strip. Methods: Medical students and healthcare
professionals who completed audits between 2015 and 2018 were invited to
fill in an online survey from October 12 to November 2, 2018. Data was
collected on applied methods, supervision, training, re-auditing and
subsequent improvements in practice. Results A total of 62 audits was
collected. Former training in clinical governance was received by 55
authors (88.7%) while a senior supervision was available in 56 audits
(90.3%). Audits were performed across different hospitals and
specialties with 18 audits (29%) in obstetrics, 16 audits (25.8%) in
medicine and 11 audits (17.7%) each in surgery and paediatrics. A clear
trend of increasing numbers of audits was observed with four audits
(6.4%) completed in 2015 and 24 audits (38.7%) in 2018. Only 32 audits
(51.6%) were presented to the local staff. The audit cycle was only
completed in 14 projects (22.5%) with seven of them reporting
improvements in practice. Conclusions A rise in the numbers of audits
reflects a growing awareness of its key role in healthcare and patient
safety. However, closure of loops and the actual implementation of
recommendations are still lagging behind. Therefore, more focused
efforts are needed to implement changes and ensure continuous evaluation
of their effectiveness.