Audit in clinical practice

Audit dates back to as early as 1750 BC when king Hammurabi of Babylon instigated audit for clinicians with regard to outcome. Clinical audit is a way of fi nding out whether we are doing what we should be doing. It also verifi es whether we are applying the best practice.

An audit cycle involves setting-up of standards, measuring current practice, comparing results with standards (criteria), changing practice and re-auditing to make sure practice has improved

A 'clinical audit' is a quality improvement process that seeks to improve patient care and clinical outcomes through a systematic review of care against explicit criteria, and the implementation of change. Changes are implemented at an individual, team or service level and a subsequent re-audit is done to confi rm improvement in health care delivery.

The importance of audit in healthcare sector needs to be appreciated by the relevant authorities. The most frequently cited barrier to successful audit is the failure of organizations to provide suffi cient fund and protected time for healthcare teams.