Article Text
Abstract
Background The Long Term Plan presents an ambitious vision for England’s National Health Service which will require a sustained programme of transformational change. The Virtual Academy of Large-Scale Change (VALSC) was developed to build capability in health and care system teams involved in transformation or redesign programmes.
Methods To evaluate the VALSC, quantitative and qualitative data were collected and reviewed against the Kirkpatrick model. Quantitative data were collected via end-of-session surveys to assess individual knowledge before and after participating in capability-building interventions. Qualitative data were also collected and included post-intervention surveys and interviews. Interviews were transcribed and analysed using an inductive approach to identify themes that were subsequently assessed against the Kirkpatrick model.
Results Results suggest that the VALSC programme has helped build capability for large-scale change in terms of learning, behaviour change and impact. Participants’ ipsative self-assessment of knowledge demonstrated a significant change (p<0.001) and qualitative data suggested three broad themes in which the VALSC made an impact. First, participants were empowered with transformation and change skills which they applied to local health and care challenges. Second, VALSC helped strengthen connections within and between transformational change teams. Third, VALSC helped transformational change teams to engage more effectively with their stakeholders.
Conclusions The VALSC developed knowledge, skills, behavioural change and application impact that built capability in individuals and teams. Therefore, continuing to develop capability-building offers that empower and build agency in front-line staff working on service transformation and equip them with approaches, methods and tools to increase their chances of success, is recommended.
- quality improvement methodologies
- leadership
- complexity
- team training
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Footnotes
Contributors IMS and EB were responsible for the planning, conduct and reporting of the work described. IMS was responsible for writing the article and contributing to data analysis. EB contributed to the writing and revision of the article. FM was responsible for data collection, conducting interviews, data analysis and the revision of the article.
Funding The authors have not declared a specific grant for this research from any funding agency in the public, commercial or not-for-profit sectors.
Competing interests IMS and EB work as Improvement and Transformation professionals in the NHS and led the design and delivery of the VALSC. FM works as an Impact, Research and Evaluation professional in the NHS and worked on the evaluation of the VALSC.
Patient consent for publication Not required.
Ethics approval The Health Research Authority online decision tool was used to determine that NHS research ethics was not required for the study as it was considered to be evaluation of service improvement.
Provenance and peer review Not commissioned; externally peer reviewed.
Data availability statement All data relevant to the study are included in the article or uploaded as supplementary information.
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