Located in Deakin’s School of Nursing and Midwifery, QPS operates as a research domain within the Institute for Health Transformation. QPS has established itself as a global leader in applied health services research, focusing on knowledge translation in clinical care, quality, and patient safety, garnering international recognition.
Driving Improvements in Healthcare Systems
QPS’s research is anchored in three key pillars: patient experience, patient safety, and health workforce. These pillars underpin the Centre’s mission to innovate and provide practical solutions that improve healthcare systems and outcomes.
A Legacy of Leadership and Collaboration
Led by Co-Directors Deakin Distinguished Professors Alison Hutchinson and Tracey Bucknall, QPS benefits from a strong foundation of expertise.
Professor Bucknall, a founding member in the joint position as the Alfred Health Chair in Nursing, has been with QPS since its inception in 2009. Reflecting on the Centre’s evolution, she highlights its unwavering dedication to research excellence. “Our focus on the core pillars has remained stable for 15 years, earning us an international reputation,” she says.
Professor Hutchinson, who holds a joint position as Chair of Nursing at Barwon Health, came to Deakin and QPS in 2010. “QPS was established with competitive Strategic Research Centre funding,” she says.
In 2019, QPS transitioned into the Institute for Health Transformation. Professor Bucknall notes, “This move built on years of independent development, giving us access to broader infrastructure and networks.”
A Unique Partnership Model
QPS’s distinctive model is rooted in its embedded partnerships with leading Victorian healthcare providers, including Alfred Health, Barwon Health, Epworth Healthcare, Western Health, Eastern Health, and Monash Health.
“Our integrated network enables us to respond rapidly to complex care and patient safety issues,” Professor Hutchinson explains. “It’s a model we’ve not seen replicated anywhere else globally.”
This approach is further enhanced by co-funded roles, creating genuine collaboration between researchers and industry partners. “Unlike typical research partnerships, our researchers are fully embedded within organisations,” says Professor Bucknall. “This ensures our work is meaningful, relevant, and highly impactful.”
Influencing Lives Through Research
QPS’s work impacts 33,000 nurses annually and touches the care of more than three million patients and aged care residents across urban, regional, and rural settings. Its programs span both public and private healthcare sectors, focusing on patient safety, experience, and workforce improvement.
This influence has not gone unnoticed. In 2019, QPS received the Business and Higher Education Round Table award for Outstanding Collaboration in Higher Education and Training, further cementing its reputation for excellence.
As QPS celebrates 15 years, its dedication to improving healthcare remains steadfast. Its pioneering model of embedded partnerships and focus on impactful research ensures that its influence will continue to grow, benefiting patients, practitioners, and healthcare systems for years to come.
Read more about the Centre for Quality and Patient Safety Research
