Challenges & objectives

Challenges

Team working, handover and escalation are a composite of functions happening in inpatient hospitals, which have to run all day every day. Previously the handover between shifts has been between individual professionals handing over to colleagues from the same profession.

This project proposes the establishment of two inpatient continuity teams, one in each Trust each would be led by a specialist practitioner. These teams will explore the particular issues of cross boundary multi-disciplinary working and the impact of this on delivering WTD 2009.

Specific objectives of the pilot

• Re-profile the work of the SHOs and F2 doctors on the inpatient unit to be compliant with WTD 2009
• Eestablish at each site an inpatient continuity team which is multidisciplinary and provides overlapping skill sets
• Extend the range of work carried out by other professionals
• Integrate SHOs more comprehensively into a multidisciplinary inpatient team
• Improve working practices, timeliness of response and communication.
• Improve patient safety and satisfaction on the inpatient unit.
• Improve working practices on the inpatient unit to utilise the hours of doctors in training to provide a better training experience.

Delivering compliance

• Compliance with WTD 2009 and New Deal which is cost neutral or offers savings
• A sustainable and demonstrable reduction in the workload of SHOs
• Development of a more flexible inpatient workforce better able to meet patient needs
• Better integration of SHOs into the multi-disciplinary team
• Use of established networks to disseminate learning to the wider NHS
• Twin site approach to maximise support and minimise risk
• Joint pilot reduces risk, enhances learning and increases the validity of results.