The PMHA Quality Improvement Project is directed toward improving outcomes for consumers within the context of the mental health services that are provided by private hospitals and psychiatrists in private practice.  The intention is for the$250,00 of funding available to be used to help achieve that goal by making better use of the mechanism of the PMHA and its Centralised Data Management Service (CDMS).   QIP contains a suite of four complementary activities to be undertaken within the context of the available funding.

1. Implementation of Consumer Perceptions of Care (CPoC) Measure.  This first activity involves the implementation of a standardised measure of CPoC in all private hospital–based psychiatric services across Australia.

2. Outcomes in Private Psychiatry Practice.  Work on this second activity will establish a research network of psychiatrists evaluating outcomes within the context of their private psychiatry practice.

3. Internet Access to the PMHA’s Centralised Data Management Service (CDMS).  This third activity involves a scoping exercise to determine the requirements for a model Agreement that would enable appropriate and secure internet–based access for participating stakeholders to the data currently held by the PMHA’s CDMS.

4. Borderline Personality Disorder (BPD).  This activity involves preliminary work to scope what models of care are currently being used for people with a diagnosis of BPD.

Work Programs for each of these activities have been developed and are described in much more detail in the attached Project Brief.

The Project will commence on 31 January 2011.