Peer-review audit functionality

The College is a leading advocate for surgical audit. It is a key part of the annual continuing professional development (CPD) cycle.

MALT now offers a peer-review feature, to help make the process of conducting an audit easier. This functionality is now available for Fellows, International Medical Graduates (IMGs) and Trainees in all specialties.

MALT also continues to offer self-audit, with access to data collection, exporting and reporting features concentrating on individual data.

• MALT provides the data points recommended in the RACS Surgical Audit and Peer Review Guide (PDF 472.38KB);
• Surgeons without access to local audit activities can use MALT as a peer review tool;
• Audit groups can be set up to include anyone with a MALT account, regardless of specialty or user type (Fellow, Trainee, IMG, JDoc);
• In-built reports allow for easy peer review and comparison within an audit group, and
• Procedures are coded using SNOMED CT-AU terminology, meaning data is comparable internationally.

MALT staff can set up an audit group for any combination of MALT users on request by completing an expression of interest form (PDF 242.18KB).

Each audit group must have an Audit Champion. This person is responsible for facilitating the audit, including the peer review aspect, and has access to the group reports in MALT.

An audit group can be restricted by any of the following:

• Procedures (only specific procedures are included in reports);
• Time frame (a start date and end date can be set for the data collection);
• Logbook (include everyone with a specific Logbook assigned in MALT);
• SET level;
• User type (Fellow, Trainee, IMG, JDoc);
• Specialty;
• Hospital;
• Unit/clinic, and
• Specific users.

Any user who fits into the specified categories will receive an emailed invitation to join the audit.

To become an audit participant, a user must accept the invitation in their MALT account screen. Data will not be shared within the audit group unless the user has accepted the invitation to join.

Surgical outcome reports available are:

• Complications;
• Mortality;
• Return to theatre;
• Unplanned ICU admission, and
• Unplanned readmission to hospital.

The Qlikview custom reporting tool can be used by individuals in an audit group to:

• Undertake basic risk adjustment;
• Compare their surgical results with the aggregate of their audit group;
• Review group results for the audit group;
• Examine de-identified results at a surgical event level for their audit group, and
• Compare performance and identify outliers with funnel plot reports.

This functionality is now available for Fellows, IMGs and Trainees in all specialties. 

Contact the MALT helpdesk to request more information on setting up an audit group. Alternatively, you can submit an expression of interest form and MALT staff will get back to you.

• The terms of use for the MALT system also apply to the peer-review functionality, with the same legal obligations to the use of patient data. Details of the terms of use can be found in the link below.
• Ethical obligations may arise in relation to audit - should you have any concerns we suggest you approach the audit champion and/or refer to the NHMRC guidelines relating to audit.
• Your participation will be known to other participants and the data you contribute may allow specific surgical outcomes to be attributable to you.