Team Based Quality Reviews (TBQR) for Surgical Practice

Published: 16 August 2024 | Written by: RCSEd Communications Team | Course, surgical | Topic: Education
Team Based Quality Reviews (TBQR) for Surgical Practice

Have you ever sat in an M&M meeting or been involved in any form of safety review and wondered why similar themes or 'events”'keep cropping up? Or how you can improve your working environment or learn and share learning from the daily good work that is carried out by you and your team? Have you wondered what it is that you and your team can do to create and sustain meaningful positive change, and how collectively we can build resilient systems in our practice? If any of these questions interest you, we believe this course may be relevant to you and your team…

What Is It?

Team Based Quality Reviews (TBQR) is a generic term for traditional multi-professional team learning activities such as Mortality and Morbidity meetings (M&M), significant event analysis reviews or safety huddles, which typically take place routinely across health and care sectors. The terminology TBQR was coined to emphasise the point that there are significant learnings to be gained through a structured process of social enquiry and from a wide range of 'events' which goes beyond mortality or complications. The TBQR process uses updated safety sciences and Human Factors principles to understand daily work, identify strengths and weaknesses of the system we work in and improve learning and outcomes through collaborative team assessments, iterative improvements, and robust feedback mechanisms. The importance of seeking multiple perspectives and specifically actively engaging with patients, families and the teams involved in care, to build resilient healthcare systems is prioritised in TBQR.

Why Do We Need It?

Outcomes in health and care delivery are intrinsically dependent on multiple complex interactions between individuals, teams, and rapidly advancing technology and treatment modalities. This complexity is compounded by issues of finite or dwindling resources with increasing demand. Teams require to be ever more flexible in adapting to the rapidly evolving environments they work in, with ever-increasing pressures and expectations. These challenges demonstrate the need for rapid and targeted transfer of vital information of how work is designed and performed. This includes understanding how learning can be achieved efficiently and translated to sustainable, targeted and meaningful improvements for those receiving and delivering care.

TBQR provides the key platform to address these complexities. It demonstrates the value of gaining different perspectives though a rapid, structured and robust review process using updated Safety Science, to facilitate the development and sustainment of resilient systems. TBQR is designed to create a safe space to speak up, to improve safety and wellbeing of those delivering and receiving care. It functions as a key resource to learning, professional development and provides a clearer narrative on how accountability is addressed.

TBQR for Surgical Practice Course

The TBQR for Surgical Practice Course was developed with NHS Education for Scotland and other stakeholders. This includes input from colleagues at centres of excellence around the globe such as Ariadne Labs (Boston) and University of Malaya (Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia).

There are two components to this course, as follows:

  • An online training module which provides the learner with the basic relevant theory on the TBQR process and its underlying principles, using updated Safety Science. It also provides an overview of how we can design quality and safety review pathways.
  • A one-day interactive workshop which involves discussions, simulation, small group problem solving using relevant analysis frameworks and interactive lectures on topics relevant to safety or quality reviews. These include the understanding and application of Human Factors, Systems Thinking principles, Just Culture and Psychological Safety into clinical practice. The course emphasises the importance of understanding the realities of work processes, and how it can be influenced to improve outcomes. It also provides an opportunity to learn from, and share experiences with colleagues and subject-matter experts on developing resilient systems to support delivery of safe care and improving the wellbeing of teams and colleagues.

Who Is This Course For?

This course is open to everyone working in healthcare and is especially focused on those who hold leadership and governance roles including those chairing, leading or involved in any form of safety reviews including Mortality and Morbidity meetings.

This TBQR course also provides you with access to a wider learning resource, incorporating access to a Virtual Learning Environment, an e-learning module, a renowned faculty with expertise on Systems Thinking, Human Factors and Safety Science, as well as opportunity to join a network of surgeons and health care professionals around the globe with a similar interest. We are also working to develop a shared learning platform to exchange learning and ideas around safety or quality reviews and surgical outcomes.

We are pleased to note that 100% of delegates who have attended the TBQR for Surgical Practice course at RCSEd noted that they would recommend this course to a friend or colleague. 100% of delegates also agreed that they would make changes to their practice as a result of attending this course. We look forward to seeing you at one of our upcoming courses.

Keep an eye on the course's Hub Page for upcoming dates.