Peer Review
Peer review is the process of reviewing and being reviewed by one’s peers and is an important part of the quality improvement process (see the NSW Health Clinicians Toolkit). It is an opportunity to assess one’s practice compared to that on one’s colleagues and compared with the published literature; as well as to assess an entire unit’s performance against national and international standards. Benchmarking and clinical audit are powerful tools to identify system issues as well as individual needs for further training.
NSW Health, the Medical Registration Board and the Specialist Colleges have clear expectations, as does the community, that peer review is an integral part of sound clinical practice. Peer review can take many forms including as a clinical meeting of members of a department or unit. Guidance on how to undertake peer review is provided in NSW Health’s The Clinician’s Toolkit for Improving Patient Care.
Useful Links
- Cochrane Library
- Cochrane Satellite
- Clinical Excellence Commission - Review Patients Safety Literature
- Guide to Evidence Based Medicine Sources
- Guidelines Group - New Zealand
- Guidelines International Network
- National Institute for Clinical Studies
- New Interventional Procedures - HNE Health
- NHMRC Centre for Research Excellence in Patient Safety
- NHMRC Guide to Clinical Guidelines
- NSW Health Clinicians Toolkit
- Safe Introduction of New Interventional Procedures - NSW Health Policy Directive