The Francis ReportThe Importance Of Transparency In Training

The Importance Of Transparency In Training

The Francis Report

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On 9th June 2010 a full enquiry into the role of the commissioning, supervisory and regulatory bodies of Mid Staffordshire Foundation NHS Trust was announced. The Francis Report found that the most basic elements of care were neglected in numerous situations, and Robert Francis QC made 18 recommendations in total for both the Government and the NHS Trust.

The core focus of the recommendations was about putting the patients first, suggesting that everyone within the NHS should ‘adopt a shared culture in which the patient is the priority’. A common set of values should be shared throughout the system, and education and training should be regarded with high impor-tance. The report sees education and training as key contributors to the provision of healthcare, and that trainees are ‘valuable eyes and ears’ in a hospital setting.

The Francis Report

The education and training system in use at the time of the Francis Report failed to detect any concerns regarding patient welfare and safety. The common set of values that the Francis Report recommended the NHS shared can be embedded within a new system of training and education, allowing trainees to learn them, understand them and apply them from the beginning.

That then means education and training can be the first step to meeting the recommendations set by the Francis Report - and the vehicle for maintaining values within your organisation. We’ve looked at four ways to get the most out of your training and education of staff using e-learning, based on the recommendations of the Francis Report.

What this means for you

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The Importance Of Transparency In Training

The Francis Report

The Francis Report sees trainees as ‘valuable eyes and ears’ in a hospital setting. Therefore, it’s as important to get the feedback of those on the ground as it is to lead them in the training they undertake.

Additionally, there should be support systems in place so that junior staff, and students, can speak up when they have concerns about patient safety.

e-Learning systems allow a more flexible way of learning. ‘On the job’ training means trainees are con-stantly exposed to the kind of environment the Francis Report focuses on: They can see the problems that many staff may have become accustomed to.

The Report recommended ‘leadership at all levels, from ward level to the top of the Department of Health, should be committed to and capable of involving all staff with those values and standards.’ It also suggested that ‘healthcare professionals should be prepared to contribute to the development of, and comply with, standard procedures in all areas in which they work.’ The staff themselves may be aware of many problems that are faced ‘on the ground’ yet communication of these issues never reaches higher level management. Staff may even have solutions to these problems that need to be fed back to management, and this kind of information can form the backbone of future training. e-Learning systems allow information and feedback to be uploaded which can be turned into training content, and can also provide an outlet for employees to voice their concerns.

Staff generated content

360 appraisals - feedback from an employee’s colleagues to contribute to a report of their performance - give a much more rounded and multi-angled view of how well a member of staff is performing.

The Francis Report, when talking about a culture that contained a common set of core values, recommended a ‘system which recognises and applies the values of transparency, honesty and candour’. 360 appraisals are a way of ensuring that, not only are those core values at the heart of everything a team does, but also that colleagues strive to make those values a part of their everyday working lives. Feedback from those working alongside them will mean complete transparency and visibility of working practices to upper level management who can affect change if needed. e-Learning systems allow your managers to provide employees with a 360 online appraisal.

360 appraisals

A 360 is the most comprehensive way to get feedback on an employee’s performance, and gives an insight from all touch points within a role. The superior’s appraisal forms the traditional part of the appraisal, and is where overall performance can be rated.

Telephone: 01535 604026 marketing@webanywhere.co.uk / www.webanywhere.co.uk

The Importance Of Transparency In Training

The Francis Report

The Francis Report recommended ‘freely available, useful, reliable and full information on attainment of the values and standards’ and ‘a tool or methodology such as a cultural barometer to measure the cultural health of all parts of the system.’

Regular internal audits of your training will ensure consistency is maintained across the board in terms of staff knowledge. It will also allow you to see how staff are performing in training and education, and highlight any areas that need to be given attention with individual team members. Staff who are yet to receive up to date training will be flagged, and those who do well will be more visible. e-Learning enables you to create rich graphical reporting based on competencies.

Training audits

The core values should be at the heart of your training at all times. Consistent training techniques will mean staff should remain on a par and e-learning standardised.

Training should be flexible so that members of staff can take it when it’s most convenient, and maybe even flexible enough to mean they can access training from home - or at least away from work.

A robust system of consistent training will help to avoid the issue of lack of attention to key areas of training as highlighted by the Francis Report. According to the report, ‘checks and assurances of the education and training system failed to detect any concerns.’ Consistent training that constantly reinforces the core values of putting the patient first will mean those values are maintained and not forgotten.

Consistency in training

EMPLOYEE Team members

Subordinate Superior

Peers

Service users

23 of every 100 employees will leave due to lack of training and education(1)

e-Learning is proven to increase knowledge retention by up to 60%(2)

Telephone: 01535 604026 marketing@webanywhere.co.uk / www.webanywhere.co.uk

The Importance Of Transparency In Training

The Francis Report

e-Learning stats

The full list of recommendations in the Francis Report can be found here:

http://www.midstaffspublicinquiry.com/sites/default/files/report/Executive%20summary.pdf

If you would like more information on how e-learning systems can help meet the recommendations set out by the Francis Report, please call Webanywhere on 01535 604026.

Further information

In America, e-learning is used in 77% of workplaces(3)

(1) Source: National Research Business Institute(2) Source: Brandon Hall, 2001(3) Source: Certifyme.net

stretch beyond

The future of course management

Webanywhere specialises in learning technologies that enable the concepts described in this paper, and stretch the learning potential of an organisation’s most important asset - its people.To discuss social learning, multi tenancy or the effective implementation of a learning management system in your organisation, contact our workplace learning team on 01535 604026, or email workplace@webanywhere.co.uk.

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