What is the challenge your project is going to address and how does it connect to the theme of 'How can we improve across system boundaries?​

NI’s challenge is a lack of shared decision making and ownership for medication safety across our population and health and social care(HSC) sectors.

• Only half of people prescribed medication feel fully involved in decisions about their medication.(DoH, TMSNI, 2020)
• Medication safety is a health inequalities issue overlooked in research, policy and practice.(CDHN, 2023)

By collaborating between citizens, HSC staff and policy makers, we will coproduce and co-deliver a cascading medication safety health literacy programme for NI to redress the imbalance of power of shared decision making about medicines. It will promote cultural change across our population and systems, uniting all to achieve a social change movement for safer use of medicines.

A medication safety health literacy programme will: support embedding NI’s Know Check Ask (KCA) medication safety campaign across our population, HSC systems and everyday practice for all; equipping them with the tools and support to enable success.

https://www.health-ni.gov.uk/publications/transforming-medication-safety-northern-ireland

https://www.cdhn.org/our-lives-our-meds-our-health-exploring-medication-safety-through-social-lens

https://online.hscni.net/our-work/pharmacy-and-medicines-management/medicines-management-programmes/medication-safety/know-check-ask/

What does your project aim to achieve?

 Aim:

To co design a regional cascading medication safety health literacy programme for the population of NI and HSC/Voluntary/Community staff, to include: the spread of NI’s KCA campaign and design of a tool to implement the WHO 5 moments of medication Safety.

Objectives:

• To provide access to medication safety health literacy for all citizens of NI, reducing health inequalities across our population.
• To increase NI citizens levels of medication safety health literacy by developing their skills to source, understand and utilise the right information in order to make informed decisions about their medications.
• To improve the safer use of medicines amongst citizens of NI
• To equip HSC/Voluntary/Community staff with appropriate skills to promote access to medication health literacy for all

This will assist to address the recommendations identified within the Community Health Development Network(CHDN) commissioned research of the social determinants of medication safety.

https://www.cdhn.org/our-lives-our-meds-our-health-exploring-medication-safety-through-social-lens

https://vimeo.com/showcase/kcatalkingheads

My-Medicines-List-for-Patients (1) (PDF)

How will the project be delivered?

Through an existing Communication, Awareness, Promotion and Engagement (CAPE) Group with representation from a range of HSC staff, lived experience, subject matter experts, voluntary and community sector and policy makers;  establish oversight for the delivery of this project via project management governance and accountability to DoH.

Phase 1

-Engage key stakeholders, using a systematic approach to review the recommendations from the CDHN research, findings from KCA evaluation and scope and identify further opportunities.

-Scope the opportunities and requirement to inform and adopt the WHO 5 moments medication safety engagement tool.

Phase 2

– design /test using participatory iterative approach the required health literate guidance and implementation methods.

Phase 3

– Implement health literate guidance via cascading community health literacy programme.

Phase 4

– Evaluate intervention using quantitative & qualitative methods e.g. surveys /focus groups.

Risks are identified  through the CAPE group and managed via risk management procedures to DoH’s Medication Safety Oversight Board

How is your project going to share learning?

A project communication strategy will aim to encourage awareness, inspire, motivate and engage everyone to get involved and promote learning regionally/nationally/internationally.

This will include:

Establishing a Community of Practice to create a culture of learning, collaboration and continuous improvement for the project and beyond; that permits cross-functional collaboration, problem solving and innovation, knowledge transfer and relationship and capacity building. This will be assisted by Project ECHO(Extension for Community Healthcare Outcomes) using case-based discussions which also assists to reduce health disparities.

Social determinants of health and its impact on medication safety is a known shared public health issue across the UK and Ireland.(King’s Fund, 2014; Wider et al, 2021)

Identified learning will generate insights, harvest ideas and opportunities for cross country collaboration.

Learning mechanisms include:

• NHS Futures TMSNI Workspace
• Networks e.g.  QCommunity, Medication Safety Officers, health literacy forums
• Patient Safety Learning Hub
• Journal Publications
• National/International Conferences
• WHO, Global Patient Safety Network
• https://www.kingsfund.org.uk/sites/default/files/field/field_publication_file/people-in-control-of-their-ownhealth-and-care-the-state-of-involvement-november-2014.pdf
• https://doi.org/10.1007/s11606-020-06447-0