Health care quality & performance

When quality and performance is reported in a transparent way, it encourages improvement and innovation through the sharing of successful strategies among health care providers and managers. It also enables us to compare the experiences of, and outcomes for, different population groups, highlighting areas where some sections of the community might be missing out, and supporting patients to make informed choices about their health care. 

The Australian Health Performance Framework (870kB PDF) (the AHPF) supports system-wide reporting on Australia’s health and health care performance. For further information on the AHPF, see Australia's health performance framework.

In addition to the AHPF, there are many other performance frameworks used by the AIHW and other Commonwealth, State and Territory agencies to assess aspects of our health and our health system. Some are related, and similar indicators may appear in more than one framework.

A range of safety and quality measures are monitored and reported at various levels of the health system to support health service providers and clinicians to improve the safety and quality of care. The Australian Commission on Safety and Quality in Health Care is Australia's key agency providing national leadership for health care providers in this area. There are also many other organisations integral to efforts to improve safety and quality at the state or territory level, or for particular components of the health sector.

Efforts to improve safety and quality include the public reporting of information on health care safety and quality. These efforts are accompanied by activities undertaken by health service providers to measure and monitor performance within their organisations to improve clinical outcomes and the appropriateness of services.