• Background
• Introduction
• Standing Subcommittees of JSC
• Membership

Background

Academic Health Centres, such as Aga Khan University Hospital (AKUH), represent a challenging form of human organisation. Many different professionals and disciplines work side-by-side in complex facilities, competing for the scarce resources needed to sustain a myriad of alternative, as well as complementary programmes. While firm leadership is essential in this complex environment, collaborative models for decision-making and information exchange must also be established and respected as integral components of the institution's management system.

Established hospital management structures in both the developed and developing world rely upon multi-disciplinary committee structures to advise institutional management on issues arising from the operation of designated functions. These committees are necessary and useful:

• When different clinical and administrative disciplines must agree upon and collaborate in a necessary outcome (e.g., physicians, nurses and pharmacists must collaborate on issues of policy relating to administration of medications);
• When open and critical review of hospital activities is necessary and appropriate to support quality improvement through various monitoring activities and compliance to international standards;
• When problem solving is sufficiently complex as to require the knowledge and input of several disciplines (e.g., purchasing agents, financial analysts, physicians and other health professionals are needed to make cost-benefit judgments regarding selection among various brands of medical/surgical supplies and equipment).

Introduction

The Joint Staff Committee (JSC) was established in November 1985 just one month after AKUH started its operations. It was given the status of Quality Council in May 1994 with the mandate to oversee the implementation of CQI at AKUH.

Mandate

The JSC is the supreme body for handling all issues relating to the University Hospital. It serves as an executive locus for the committee structure and a forum for collaborative advice to the Hospital's senior leadership on issues of clinical practice, research, academic programmes, quality and hospital operations.

Functions of the Joint Staff Committee (JSC)

• To advise the Director General on issues of service quality, clinical practice, hospital-based research, academic programs and hospital operations;
• To resolve day-to-day problems arising from carrying out the service and academic missions of the Hospital and the Faculty of Health Science;
• To take decisions that may impact the decision and actions of line managers, both clinical and administrative;
• To provide critical input to the institutional strategic planning process;
• To provide valuable input on programme and capital equipment priorities;
• To review and approve sub-committee reports and provide feedback on improvement opportunities;
• To review and approve institution wide policies, procedures and proposals.

Alternate Role as Quality Council

In this capacity, the JSC is responsible to oversee the institutional quality initiatives such as quality planning, deployment, monitoring and improvement. It is also responsible for overseeing and advising on ISO 9001:2000 Quality Management System and the Joint Commission International Accreditation (JCIA) Standards implementation, monitoring and improvement.

Standing Subcommittees of JSC (in alphabetical order)

The JSC is comprised of the following:

1. Blood Utilisation Committee (BUC)
2. Cardiopulmonary Resuscitation (CPR) Committee
3. Hospital Ethics Committee (HEC)
4. Continuous Quality Improvement Coordinators Committee (CQICC)
5. Credentials Committee (CC)
6. Emergency Medicine Section (EMS) Committee
7. Health Information Management Services (HIMS)
8. Home Health Coordinating Committee (HHCC)
9. Infection Control Committee (ICC)
10. Intensive Care Unit (ICU) Committee
11. JCIA Task Force (not a standing subcommittee)
12. Nutrition Support Committee (NSC)
13. Operating Room/Surgical Day Care (ORSDC) Committee
14. Patient Family Education Interest (PFEI) Committee
15. Pharmacy and Therapeutic Committee (P&TC)
16. Quality Improvement Coordination Committee (QICC)
17. Radiation Protection Committee (RPC)
18. Safety Committee (SC)
19. Tissue Committee (TC)

Membership

Following is the present committee's membership composition (in alphabetical order except chair):