A quality framework for Australian general practice.

BACKGROUND: Quality improvement in health care is a priority. After more than a decade of strategic change in Australian general practice, The Royal Australian College of General Practitioners has developed a conceptual framework for quality improvement.
OBJECTIVE: This article provides details of the process that led to the forming of the Quality Framework for Australian General Practice. DISCUSSION: Quality has dimensions of acceptability, accessibility, appropriateness, effectiveness, efficiency and safety. Domains of professionalism, competence, patient focus, capacity, knowledge and information management, and financing merit consideration at the level of the individual consultation, within the setting of care, and at regional and national levels when designing quality improvement efforts. A quality framework can be used to plan or evaluate quality initiatives, map the current scene, clarify roles and responsibilities and to stimulate broader thinking about quality in general practice.