We are delighted to announce an initiative to improve care for tracheostomy patients in the UK in partnership with The Royal College of Anaesthetists, NTSP, Global tracheostomy Collaborative and UHSM NHS Foundation Trust.

The project team will work with 20 UK secondary or tertiary care sites who are managing tracheostomy patients, and help them to rapidly implement QI measures, thereby changing the practice and culture of tracheostomy care into patient-centred, equitable and efficient clinical care.

ALSG are supporting the three year programme by providing training for nominated champions from 20 UK sites who care for patients with tracheostomies. The purpose of the course is to improve the skills, knowledge and competencies of healthcare or clinical staff caring for the increasing numbers of patients, paediatric and adult, with either temporary or permanent tracheostomies, with the outcome of improving the safety of these patients through both emergency and routine care.

The champions will also attend the train the trainer course which will equip them with the resources to teach tracheostomy care in their workplace.

A national collaborative environment will be created, with sites supporting each other. A likely ‘best recipe’ will then be developed for the nature, scale and order of QI interventions, which will guide future adoption and sustainability.