Capturing the transformation.

In case you hadn’t noticed (!) we are in the middle of major change.  A metamorphosis of the “normal”.  What even was normal?  Can anyone actually remember? So much has happened and so much has changed it is so hard to re-imaging life before COVID-19 came our way.  My twitter feed even from a month ago seems like some dim and distant memory now.

Those of us who have done Quality Improvement training may be using the skills we have learned more than ever as we hone processes to convert the face-to-face to the virtual and figure out how best to do things that have literally never been done before.  Now is our time to shine!

But before we polish up our dusty certificates from the drawer and pull out those PDSA cycles, it’s maybe useful to take a step back, breathe, and plan what we are doing and how we can capture it.

Things are moving at pace.  I’m not suggesting that now is definitely the time to plan long QI projects and frame what we are doing in this way.  I suspect for most, the impacts of what we are doing will likely be formalised way after this crazy time is over.  But if we don’t capture what we are doing, the processes we are going through, we are missing a big opportunity.  Why?  Well, because by demonstrating what’s working and what’s not, others can use that information to help with their processes and the knock on effect can contribute to overall efficiency in this time of frenetic activity.  We need to get stuff done and done quickly but increased activity doesn’t necessarily equal increased effectiveness.

So, how can we capture our activity?

Well, for me it’s about having systems in place meaning it’s easy to capture stuff as it’s happening.  Note pads, recording the key bits of conversations, also remembering to record what’s not worked and why even if it’s in note form.  Sure, the odd PDSA cycle but only where it’s genuinely informing next steps on a project.  A driver diagram where it’s of use and I can see it would add value.

But it’s not just about capturing what we do, it’s about the process.  The way we do what we are doing can have value in the now as well as the future.  By being systematic we can not only increase efficiency but can reduce failure demand as we hone in on what’s important rather than get flooded in activity for activity’s sake.

If your QI training is a dim memory and you’re a little rusty (hopefully not but hey, its possible!) I’ll post some links below to signpost you to some tools that might be useful.

#KeepSafe #WashYourHands #StayAtHome

Emma

https://improvement.nhs.uk/resources/pdsa-cycles/

https://improvement.nhs.uk/resources/creating-driver-diagrams-for-improvement-projects/