TRIMESTER - Rotunda Library Newsletter June 2013 | Página 6

6 Trimester Rotunda Library Newsletter Midwifery Journal Club The Productive Ward M s Ajita Raman presented the results of a project undertaken by staff in the Lillie Suite, entitled Making Quality Count: releasing time to care - the Productive Ward to the March meeting of the Midwifery Journal Club. The Productive Ward This project was based on the work of the NHS Institute for Innovation and Improvements. The programme aims to increase the amount of time maternity staff have to provide direct care to our mothers and babies. The Productive Ward is based on the principles of : ▪ Modular self-directed learning ▪ Ward or department based ▪ Equips ward leaders with methods to lead their staff towards safer, more dignified, reliable and efficient care. It is an application of using lean methods in a ward setting, which eliminates waste and improves production time and cost reduction including the the five S’s - Sort, Set in Order, Shine, Standardise and Sustain. Objectives The primary objective of these principles is to create a clean, orderly environment where there is a place for everything and everything is in its place. It is a continuous improvement initiative which exposes most of the visible examples of waste. The modular structure utilises a toolkit called Box Set and SMART Goals to assist in achieving objectives. It requires staff involvement and planning. It aims to achieve the following outcomes: ▪ Improve patient safety ▪ Improve the patient experience ▪ Improve staff wellbeing ▪ Improve efficacy of care ▪ Reduce cost and wastage The project in the Lillie Suite was undertaken with the full involvement of midwifery staff. It used the principle of ‘knowing what we are doing’ from the first module to use display information, meetings to drive improvements, and ‘safety crosses’ to chart staff flow etc. It included use of ‘patient status at a glance’ boards and well organised ward principles. It identified waste and aimed to eliminate it. The ‘waste walk’ was used to identify waste in terms of stock and equipment. Outcomes Outcomes included the fact that staff were walking up to 6km per shift. A lot of this was due to misplaced equipment and an identification of products that were out of date or over stocked. After this exercise was undertaken a de-cluttering of store rooms enabled cost savings to the ward. New signage reduced unnecessary interruptions in working with patients. The intended benefit was in releasing time to care through: ▪ Increased direct care contact with patients ▪ More efficient ward environment and more streamlined processes ▪ Storage areas that have been reviewed ▪ Reduction in documentation From a care point of view benefits included: ▪ Increased breastfeeding rates ▪ Reduced staff interruptions ▪ Reduced running costs ▪ Midwife handover reduced by a total of 35 minutes per week. ▪ A better experience for the patient with a healthy pregnancy and a good outcome for mother and baby It was not without challenges and required ‘buy in’ by staff in the Lillie Suite who had to adapt to new ways of working through the commitment to plan and use resources to achieve efficiencies. Long term benefits included increased staff satisfaction and improved efficiencies in terms of cost and care. It enabled staff to be in control of their ward and helped them make the decisions that affect them and their patients on a daily basis.