What is the challenge your project is going to address and how does it connect to the theme?

An increasing number of improvement and transformational projects rely on new digital technology to support the delivery of better patient care.

Whilst often new technology solutions seem fairly simple, integrating them into existing patient pathways and then changing and sustaining the way the service is delivered can be challenging.

There are lots of useful case studies and blueprints available for colleagues leading this type of work to review and learn from, but there does not appear to be definitive guidance and resources available in one place to support colleagues leading or involved in a project that involves new digital technology. A problem is, ‘people don’t know what they don’t know!’

A  free online Digital Transformation toolkit could offer a ‘one stop shop’ for colleagues involved in a transformation/improvement project that requires new technology.

It could sit alongside existing QI and innovation toolkits available on the West of England AHSN website.

What does your project aim to achieve?

The aim of the project would be to design and deliver an online toolkit of useful resources, within 5 months of the project start date, that would enable a project lead, team members or other stakeholders, to plan, deliver or maybe just support, a transformational or improvement project that introduces a new digital technology into practice.

Experience suggests digital transformation requires a mix of innovation, QI, change management, project/agile management methods,  plus knowledge of  additional considerations for adopting new technology into clinical practice, ie: clinical safety, data protection, technical security, interoperability and usability and accessibility standards, including related healthcare inequalities.

The new toolkit could sit alongside other innovation and QI resources on the West of England AHSN website, with regular maintenance and upgrading of the toolkit managed by the AHSN team.

The toolkit could be ‘an anchor’ for the delivery of bespoke training in the use of popular digital transformation tools.

How will the project be delivered?

The toolkit will be designed using a ‘user experience design thinking,’ co-collaboration/production approach, whereby a group of potential users join a working group to agree toolkit resources, within an ‘agile’ project management methodology.

Our initial prototype uses the Design Councils four phase approach of: discovery, definition, development and delivery. Each phase will offer a reference checklist of activities to be considered, alongside useful and relevant tools. Each tool will have guidance on how to use it (written and video), a downloadable template and a case study example.

An Associate Director and Q from the West of England AHSN will lead the project, using the funding to:

– Employ a suitable contractor to assemble and organise the toolkit resources to meet user requirements .

– Employ a website designer working with guidance from the Head of Communications, to ensure the toolkit  is user friendly and meets needs

– Drive NHS wide promotion of the toolkit.

How is your project going to share learning?

The Digital Transformation toolkit, offering a methodology similar to QI, will be available to all Q members and all NHS staff across the UK and Ireland, free of charge, providing check lists of requirements and resources to support transformation/improvement projects that involve the use of new digital technology.

Initial promotion of the toolkit will be by:

– The Q community

– The AHSN network

– The West of England Academy, which promotes and offers a range of other learning resources to support innovation and QI

– The South West Digital Skills Development network – and the other six regional Informatic skills development networks that have been established throughout NHS England by a Health Education England initiative.

The number of people using the toolkit will be monitored and reported monthly, with feedback sought from users to constantly upgrade the resources to ensure they are ‘fit for purpose’ – alongside other toolkits and resources on the AHSN website.