Developing evidence-based standards
The
accreditation standards have been drawn from key documents
including the ECT Handbook (Royal College of Psychiatrist,
2005), the NICE Appraisal of ECT (National Institute of Clinical
Excellence, 2003) and the Scottish National Audit of ECT (CRAG
Working Group on Mental Illness, 2000). They have been subject to
extensive consultation with all professional group involved in
ECT and with service users and their representitives.
What the ECTAS Standards cover
The standards are
intended to provide staff with a clear and comprehensive
description of best practice in the administration of ECT. They are
reviewed in October every year and published in December.
The standards cover the
following topics:
- The ECT Clinic and Facilities
- Staff and Training
- Assessment and Preperation
- Consent
- Anaesthetic Practice
- The Administriation of ECT
- Recovery, Monitoring and Follow-up
- Special Precautions
- Protocols
How we measure performance against standards
The full set of
standards are aspirational and it is rare that any clinic
meets all of them. To support thier use in the accreditation
process, each standard has been catagorised as follows:
- Type 1: failure to meet these standards would
result in a significant threat to patient safety ot dignity and/or
would breach the law;
- Type 2: standards that an accredited clinic
would be expected to meet;
- Type 3: standards that an excellent clinic
should meet.
These standards relate
to the process of administration of ECT and in this regard are
consistent with NICE guidelines. They do not realte to clinical
decisions about which patients should be given ECT.
Download a copy of the
standards by clicking on the link above.
|