Quincie
Implementation of the quality indicators from the S3 guideline on palliative care for patients with incurable cancer in care practice on palliative care units
Background
Guidelines are considered an important quality assurance tool in the care of people with cancer. However, the availability of guidelines alone does not necessarily contribute to improving care. There are reservations and barriers to the implementation of guidelines in practice on the part of those involved in care. For example, little is currently known about the practical implementation of the S3 gu ideline on palliative care for patients with incurable cancer in everyday clinical practice. In the S3 guideline on palliative care, eleven quality indicators are formulated as instruments for quality management, ten of which relate to the inpatient setting.
Objectives
The overarching aim of the Quincie project is to gain a comprehensive picture of the practical implementation of the quality indicators from the S3 guideline on palliative care in healthcare practice. Palliative care units in the catchment area of the Comprehensive Cancer Center Lower Saxony (CCC-N) will be examined and factors that promote and hinder the implementation of the guideline in practice will be researched.
Recommendations for the practical implementation of the quality indicators from the S3 guideline on palliative medicine
Recommendations for the practical implementation of the quality indicators from the S3 guideline on palliative medicine were developed from the results of the project. These recommendations were finally agreed upon as part of a nationwide online Delphi survey with experts.
The agreed recommendations are available for download here in the form of a brochure.
Methods
The Quincie project is divided into two phases:
In project phase 1, routine data from patients in the eight expected participating palliative care units in the CCC-N catchment area will be collected and analyzed retrospectively with regard to the practical implementation of ten quality indicators. Specifically, the following questions will be answered
- Which quality indicators are implemented in practice?
- How often are the specified quality targets achieved?
- How are the quality indicators and targets documented?
In addition, structural characteristics of the cooperating palliative care units will be recorded with the help of excerpts from the survey form for palliative care units of the German Society for Palliative Medicine (DGP). These will be linked to the implementation of the quality indicators and the achievement of the quality objectives.
In project phase 2, recommendations for the practical implementation of the quality indicators and the achievement of the quality objectives will be developed in the project consortium and in an implementation workshop. Subsequently, these recommendations will be consented in a Delphi survey throughout Germany. The focus in this phase is particularly on factors that promote and hinder the practical implementation of quality indicators in palliative care units.
Relevance of the expected results
The project creates new and urgently needed knowledge on the practical implementation of the contents of the S3 guideline on palliative care and on factors that promote and hinder this implementation. This will enable the care of people with incurable cancer to be further developed and specific recommendations to be made for quality management in palliative care units.
Funding
The project is funded by the German Cancer Aid (processing number 70115061) for 32 months from 01.02.2023 to 30.09.2025.
Cooperation partner
Prof. Dr. med. Steffen Simon, MSc, University Hospital Cologne, Centre for Palliative Medicine
Dr. med. Markus Follmann, MPH MSc, Office of the Guideline Program Oncology, Berlin
Quincie Team
Dr. rer. biol. hum. Katharina van Baal, MSc (Project Manager)
- Phone: +49 511 532-4506
Prof. Dr. Dr. Stephanie Stiel, Dipl-Psych. (deputy project manager)
- Phone: +49 511 532-4548
Alexandra Glizner, MSc (Research Assistant)
- Phone: +49 511 532-81245
Franziska Schade, MSc (Research Assistant)
Hannah Frerichs (study assistant)
Contact:
E-mail: quincie@mh-hannover.de
Address
Hannover Medical School
Institute ofGeneral Medicine and Palliative Medicine
Carl-Neuberg-Strasse 1
30625 Hanover