Evidence summaries to inform the Lancashire & South Cumbria STP

MAP storiesMarch 21, 2017Comments Off on Evidence summaries to inform the Lancashire & South Cumbria STP

Project team: Lancashire Teaching Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust

  • Knowledge & Library Services Manager
  • Operational Librarian (Public Health lead)
  • Clinical Librarians
  • Public Health staff

Resources required:

  • Staff time

Timeframe:

  • 4 Week timeframe from request to submission.

“The story”

As part of a collaborative working group, the Lancashire Public Health team were involved in finalising the STP which was due for submission in October 2016. In August 2016 a request was made to the library service for a literature search and evidence review to identify interventions which will deliver health benefits, contribute to quality and release efficiency savings by reducing emergency admissions, A&E attendances and GP consultations.

The library service completed 11 literature searches and carried out a mini-literature review and synthesis on each of the 11 topics including a detailed reference list at the end. The evidence summaries were shared amongst the team and delivered within the agreed 3 week timeframe. The Lancashire Public Health team were asked to prioritise the 11 searches and a strict schedule was agreed. The Library developed a process and sources for searching which was signed off by Lancashire Public Health with a view to streamlining delivery and standardising our approach.

Alignment to local, regional and national drivers:

Sustainability Transformation Plan Lancashire & South Cumbria http://www.lancashiresouthcumbria.org.uk/sustainability-and-transformation-plan Regional Transformation of Healthcare Delivery

Our Health Our Care https://www.ourhealthourcarecl.nhs.uk/ Local Transformation of healthcare delivery.

Impact for the Library

This case study was shared as best practice with other health library teams at a national level. It also raised the profile of the type of work that we do and provided a basis for us to become involved in the local Our Health, Our Care plan as our Clinical Librarian has attended the regional Solution Design Events to support redesign.

Impact for the organisation/customer

This work impacted on a number of areas, the STP was published and the Public Health team perceived that there was more informed decision making. The project also facilitated collaborative working and new ways of learning.

Crucially this project saved 80 hours of Public Health Staff time. “Myself and two other analysts would have ended up doing the searches and a couple of the other specialists. We’ve all been trained on searching, but time we would have spent on searching, which we could have been spending on something else” Kate Hardman, Information, Intelligence, Quality & Performance Manager.

Future impacts

Many of the following impacts will be realised after the STP has been published and changes begun to be implemented:

  • Improve patient care
  • Developing policies, audit and evaluation,
  • Organisation/service development/planning,
  • Commissioning or contracting,
  • Saving money or contributing to financial effectiveness

Lessons learned

Being really clear about what is achievable within existing timescales and having a clearly structured approach meant that the Library team could work together to turn around this work in a short timescale.

Sustainability/next steps?

The Library team have been able to adapt the content of our current awareness for the Public Health team to reflect the priorities outlined in the STP.

The Library team may be involved in future searches to review specific interventions in more detail.

Contact:

Tracey Pratchett, Knowledge and Library Services Manager

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