Quality Improvement
Developing an improvement mindset
Quality is at the heart of everything we do, and quality improvement (QI) is about connecting our people in our health and social care system along with service users and carer’s to come together collectively where there is a passion for improvement, across Leicester, Leicestershire, and Rutland (LLR). Don Berwick (2013) said;
‘You have two jobs: your job and the job of improving’!
However, we need to bear in mind that ‘Every system is perfectly designed to deliver the results it does’ (Paul Batalden, 2007) and we have to question, is there a better and a more improved way of doing this?
What exactly is QI?
The Kingsfund describes Quality Improvement as ‘the systematic use of methods and tools to try to continuously improve quality of care and outcomes for patients. And that’s what we want to develop based on tried and tested methods of leaders in the field of Quality Improvement Science.
Edward Deming, known for his systems thinking said;
“It would be better if everyone worked together as a system, with the aim for everybody to win.”
Deming went on to lead and influence thinking and practice in relation to QI with his ‘System of Profound Knowledge’, a holistic approach to leadership and management that brings together an understanding of variation, theory of knowledge, psychology, and appreciation for a system.
Deming also constructed the Plan, Do, Study, Act model, a systematic approach to continuous QI.
An LLR movement
We want to grow this knowledge further and create a QI movement across LLR that builds on the evidence base that Deming has so strongly informed, to build that systematic approach in all of our work with a shared understanding.
Our aim is to build capacity in LLR through the Academy where ongoing improvement is what we always do and where those ‘great ideas’ are transformed into powerful new ways of improving quality and safety in our work.
Join us
So we are, as part of our vision for LLR, developing a Quality Improvement Network, a community of practice so that we can connect with and share learning with people and staff who have quality improvement experience and expertise. And above all else, those who are enthusiastic about collaborating and developing true coproduction in quality improvement.
There are hundreds of people like you reading this right now, who believe that the best ideas for improving care come from within individual teams, from the frontline. Despite the pressures on staff, there are so many examples where people still have the energy and ambition to do their job a little better and help others to do theirs for our local communities. Sadly, a lot of time these ideas are never nurtured, shared, and developed, and they stay ‘as just a great idea’. We can build our knowledge, take an evidenced based and systematic approach to this wherever you are and whoever you are and create the change that we want to see.
How to get involved
As someone passionate about quality improvement you can change that, so why not connect with colleagues who feel the same way, so that together we can make a difference.
Are you passionate about quality improvement and want to connect with other health and social care professionals in LLR to make a difference in the lives of local people?
If you’re interested in becoming part of our QI Practitioner Network Community of Practice, please email LLR.Academy@nhs.net with your details and a little information about your experience/interest in QI.
We look forward to hearing from you!
