Knowledge and information and the quality framework

BACKGROUND: The quality framework developed by The Royal Australian College of General Practitioners is described by Booth in this issue of Australian Family Physician. This article applies the framework to the 'knowledge and information' domain. OBJECTIVE: This article draws on selected examples of immediate relevance to Australian general practitioners to demonstrate the value of such a framework. DISCUSSION: The framework provides a mechanism for assessing policy and implementation initiatives in an Australian context that takes account of the realities of clinical practice. Management, implementation of guidelines, immunisation, electronic prescribing, and decision support are considered using descriptive or analytical approaches. (author abstract)