Omjoy Ganesh, PhD, PharmD What is a Project Charter?
Every successful quality improvement project needs a clear plan, but it’s easy for teams to get lost in undefined goals, leading to confusion and wasted effort. The project charter is the foundational document that prevents this. It serves as a formal agreement that defines the “why,” “what,” and “who” of your project, providing a single source of truth for your team, stakeholders, and leadership.
More than just a document, a charter is a versatile tool. It acts as a blueprint by defining your project’s scope to prevent scope creep. It’s a spotlight that illuminates risks early and highlights the intended benefits for patients. As a game plan, it unites your team around a shared vision and clarifies roles. Finally, it’s a bridge to organizational resources, clearly communicating your needs to support groups and ensuring your project has what it needs to succeed.
Resources
The video and template below provide the guidance and tools you need to create an effective project charter for your next QI initiative.
Developing Your Project Charter
Watch this video to learn why a project charter is essential for quality improvement. It explains four key functions of a charter and shows how it empowers your team to deliver measurable improvements in patient care.
Project Charter Template
The project charter helps your team create a comprehensive, actionable plan. This collaborative document serves as a roadmap to align your team, define the scope, and outline your strategy before you begin testing changes.
Download the Project Charter Template
Use this fillable template to create a comprehensive project charter for your QI project. It provides a structured format to document all essential components, including:
- A description of the problem, the project’s rationale, and a specific, measurable, achievable, relevant, and time-bound (SMART) aim statement.
- The principal outcome, process, and balancing measures to track progress and determine if a change is an improvement.
- A list of proposed change ideas, a summary of the root cause analysis, and an outline for the initial Plan-Do-Study-Act (PDSA) test cycles.
- Identification of potential barriers or risks, along with key project milestones and deadlines.