Media Releases

CEC releases Fall Prevention in NSW White Paper 2023

20 November 2023

The CEC has released the Fall Prevention in NSW White Paper 2023 on fall prevention in NSW outlining the staggering cost and impact of falls to older people in NSW and healthcare. The paper also summarises the evidence behind effective interventions and provides 9 recommendations for fall prevention.

NSW Joins National Push to Reduce Stillbirths

18 February 2020

NSW has joined a national push to drive down the number of stillbirths with around six babies stillborn in Australia every day.
Today, the Clinical Excellence Commission is holding workshops with NSW maternity staff at Westmead Hospital to highlight some of the five recommended practices to prevent stillbirth in the NSW Safer Baby Program.

Patients & carers urged to be alert and consider 'could it be sepsis?'

13 September 2019

NSW health workers have almost halved the time it takes for sepsis patients to start life-saving antibiotic treatment. Since the introduction of the Clinical Excellence Commission’s statewide SEPSIS KILLS program in 2011 the median time to start antibiotics has dropped from 104 minutes in 2011 to 59 minutes in 2018.

Clinical Excellence Commission Director Systems Improvement Dr Harvey Lander said, internationally, sepsis is recognised as a medical emergency where the body's response to an infection is so great that it starts to attack and injure its own tissues and organs.

NSW Health staff become Executive Clinical Leadership Program graduates

26 July 2019

MORE than 30 professionals from across NSW Health graduated from the Clinical Excellence Commission's Executive Clinical Leadership Program on Thursday July 25, 2019.

As part of the program, participants complete a healthcare improvement project which aims to positively impact processes or clinical services within their workplace and this project is presented to a panel of multidisciplinary health professionals during each graduate's final assessment.

World Hand Hygiene Day May 5 2019, Clean Care For All – it's in your hands

05 May 2019

NSW health workers are striving to reduce the spread of healthcare associated infections by striving toward excellent hand hygiene rates in NSW public hospitals.

Clinical Excellence Commission Medical Director of Patient Safety Dr James Mackie said patients deserved safe care when they visited hospitals and hand hygiene was a fundamental part of this.

"This World Hand Hygiene Day, May 5, 2019, it's important to note NSW has hand hygiene rates above the national average, with NSW facilities at 86.6% compared with 85.4% nationally," Dr Mackie said.

Staff tackling infections & medication safety among new health leaders

26 February 2019

TWO project officers from the Clinical Excellence Commission are among a group of more than 35 senior clinicians who will graduate at our Executive Clinical Leadership Program on the February 28, 2019.

As part of the program, each graduate identifies an area where they feel healthcare improvements could be achieved and presents a clinical improvement project as part of their final work.

Antimicrobial Stewardship Project Officer Lolita Tu and Medication Safety and Quality Officer Fiona Bailey each developed improvement programs related to their work within the CEC and supporting NSW public hospitals.

Extending our REACH

24 August 2017

The NSW Clinical Excellence Commission is urging more NSW hospitals to embed its REACH program across their adult, paediatric and mental health units as the program officially extends its early work and aims to become a key patient safety tool across the state's hospitals.

REACH stands for: Recognise Engage Act Call Help is on its Way. REACH is a rapid response program that encourages patients and families to phone for urgent medical review if they feel a patient's condition is deteriorating and clinical staff are not responding. The program was developed by the Clinical Excellence Commission in 2013 and as REACH extends across the NSW public health system it encompasses adult patient, mental health and paediatric units as well as an increasing number of rural hospitals.

"SEPSIS KILLS" program study wins major award

31 May 2017

A STUDY implementing and examining the impact of a statewide program for the early recognition and treatment of sepsis in New South Wales hospital emergency departments is the winner of the 2016 MJA, MDA National Prize for Excellence in Medical Research, for the best research article published in the Medical Journal of Australia in the previous calendar year.

The winning study set up a quality improvement program (SEPSIS KILLS) across 97 emergency departments in NSW hospitals. The program promoted intervention within 60 minutes of recognition, including taking blood cultures, measuring serum lactate levels, administration of intravenous antibiotics, and fluid resuscitation.

NSW health facilities win international health awards

14 September 2016

NSW health staff and facilities have won a number of awards in the Ko Awatea International Excellence in Health Improvement Award at this year’s APAC Forum being hosted in Sydney by headline sponsors the Clinical Excellence Commission (CEC) and the NSW Agency for Clinical Innovation (ACI).

The Ko Awatea International Excellence in Health Improvement Awards are a highlight of the APAC Forum each year and are designed to shine a light on health services with a determination to innovate, transform and improve health systems.

APAC Guest Speaker Janine Shepherd

17 August 2016

When Australian former cross country skier Janine Shepherd was lying paralysed in a spinal unit scared of an uncertain future, a simple act of kindness changed everything.

She'd commented on an orderly's novelty attire – a children's hospital gown with ducks on it. And so off he went and fetched her a couple – one with ducks and the other little teddy bears.

For the next six months in hospital she rotated those gowns. "And it gave me my humanity back," Janine says.

Research Aims to Improve Blood Use During Childbirth

16 May 2016

Australian blood researchers have completed a four-year study to improve the medical treatment of mums  who bleed during childbirth. In Australia, one in 10 mums bleeds excessively during childbirth, with 15 per cent of those mums receiving a transfusion.

The Australian Red Cross Blood Service, the University of Sydney and the Clinical Excellence Commission have just completed a study that will help doctors better identify when, and to who, they should give blood transfusions.

Young Leaders Mentored by Patient Safety Experts

22 April 2016

In an Australian first, young doctors, nurses and medical students passionate about patient safety are meeting with global experts for an intensive workshop modelled on the renowned Telluride Summer Camp.

NSW Clinical Excellence Commission Director of undergraduate quality and safety education Prof Kim Oates said about 30 emerging leaders from across the nation were carefully selected for the Roundtable for Emerging Leaders in Patient Safety, which is being run with the support of Telluride's parent organisation, the International Academy for Emerging Leaders in Patient Safety.

NSW hospitals unite to reduce infections

18 February 2016

A state wide program and the release of new resources and tools aimed at reducing catheter associated urinary tract infections (CAUTIs) was launched today by the Clinical Excellence Commission in Sydney. Senior doctors and nurses from across NSW gathered to learn more about the burden and impact these infections can have on patients and how to better avoid them.

The launch of the resources follows strong support for the tools during their pilot phase in 18 NSW hospitals over the past 2 years

Clinical leaders across NSW graduate CEC program

12 February 2016

A group of more than 35 senior clinicians from 21 local health districts and specialty health agencies graduated the Clinical Excellence Commission's (CEC) Executive Clinical Leadership Program today, Friday February 12, 2016.

CEC Clinical Director Healthcare Improvement Dr Sarah Dalton said more than 2,200 health workers from across NSW were now proud graduates of the Clinical Excellence Commission's Executive and Foundational Clinical Leadership Programs. "The graduates came to this program supported by their local health district and wanting to realise real improvements for the millions of patients seen across NSW public health facilities each year," Dr Dalton said.

Sepsis improvements saving lives

13 September 2015

NSW Public hospitals are driving down response times for patients with sepsis and saving about 150 lives a year. The finding comes as the international clinical community warms up for World Sepsis Day 2015 this Sunday, September 13 2015.

Clinical Excellence Commission Medication & Deteriorating Patient Programs Director Dr Harvey Lander said NSW's strong sepsis response was set to be further bolstered by a new 'sepsis alert' in the electronic medical record system being piloted at Blacktown Hospital. The 'sepsis alert' is expected to further reduce response times when it rolls out across NSW public hospitals next year.

Care for dementia patients improves with carer involvement

27 April 2015

A major clinical study has revealed care for hospitalised patients with dementia can be significantly improved by incorporating advice from carers, with the TOP 5 program resulting in increased carer satisfaction and reduced risks for patients.

The Clinical Excellence Commission's research into the TOP 5 program began in 2012 and is today published in the International Journal for Quality in Health Care. The program involves a patient's primary carer sharing five tips about the patient with clinicians on admission. The tips are then used by the hospital team to develop a strategy to better manage patient care. The program takes about 20 minutes to implement for each patient.

GP takes lead on reducing COPD re-admissions

15 April 2015

Hunter region GP Dr Fiona Van Leeuwen has developed a care model to identify and improve care for patients at high risk of preventable, recurrent hospital admissions as part of her study in the CEC's Clinical Leadership Program. Dr Van Leeuwen is using nurse led clinics to manage high risk patients with a serious lung condition, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), to improve overall care and then reduce hospital readmissions.

CEC Clinical Leadership Program Director Dr Sarah Dalton said it was the first time a GP had taken part in the program, usually offered to hospital based clinicians, and it had proved enormously beneficial and opened new doors as the health system aimed to work together more effectively across the GP, primary care and hospitals sectors.

Safety advice after paramedics called to 7411 falls a month

31 March 2015

People with confusion including those suffering dementia and delirium due to illness are the focus of the 2015 April Falls Day theme: Don't let confusion cloud the risk of falls.

NSW Ambulance has joined the Clinical Excellence Commission in its annual campaign to halt the number of falls, particularly in seniors.

Michelle Shiel, NSW Ambulance Manager, Low Acuity Care, said falls constituted the most common medical response attended by paramedics.