Using breakthrough series collaborative methodology to improve safe delivery of chemotherapy in Ontario.

Purpose: Chemotherapy delivery is complex, involving multiple providers across settings to deliver safe, effective care. Cancer Care Ontario initiated a provincial breakthrough series collaborative, based on methodology from the Institute for Healthcare Improvement (IHI), to improve the safe delivery of chemotherapy, from ordering through preparation and administration.

Methods: Over the 1-year period of the collaborative, three in-person sessions educated participants on improvement methodology. Twenty teams tested and implemented elements of a predefined change package in their local systems. Monthly teleconferences supplemented the education while encouraging a culture of knowledge sharing. Teams completed monthly self-assessment surveys that evaluated their progress using a 6-point scale, where 1 indicated no evidence of improvement and 5 indicated achievement of all goals and improvement objectives.

Results: Monthly self-assessment surveys revealed that over time, scores improved from 1 to 4, indicating significant progress. Moreover, 100% of participants reported in an exit survey that the collaborative had improved the culture of safety in their organizations. The gains of the collaborative have been sustained through development of a practice community and provision of ongoing coaching through the IHI Open School.

Conclusion: Participation in the collaborative enabled local interdisciplinary teams to develop processes and structures to support ongoing quality improvement, including formation of a sustainable structure for knowledge translation and exchange. However, lack of a shared provincial target limited overall evaluation. Other lessons learned included providing adequate time for planning and clearly defining roles and responsibilities of involved teams and project sponsors.