Co-production and Quality Improvement at Forest Ward
Shortly after opening its doors in November last year, Forest Ward at North View wanted to involve those with lived experience, alongside NHS England, in a National Quality Improvement project. The aim of the project was to improve the equity and quality of care for service users on the ward to ensure that person centred care was taking place from the start of the admission process.
We spoke to Leanne Young, Operational Lead on the ward for further information:
“Throughout the project we had several people with lived experience embark on the journey with us. That was key for us in ensuring that any service improvements were informed by those who use the service. This involvement ranged from service users currently experiencing care on the ward to those that have recently been discharged from inpatient care into the community.
"Using co-production in this way gave us a new perspective on care that we may have not considered otherwise. It allowed for constructive challenge throughout the project and supported the project to stay on track and retain focus.
"It allowed us to share lessons learned, both positive and negative, in order for us to reflect and consider the impact on the individual and how this project can really make a difference. Service users were involved throughout the whole process including, contributing to task and finish groups, supporting us with training and development days for staff and review meetings for the project giving a forum where we all learn together. In addition to this, having meaningful lived experience involved with the work encouraged us to remain accountable and ensure that we were providing regular updates to all involved.
"It allowed the service users to have a voice in their own care and the future care of anyone admitted to Forest Ward and supported the development of what an admission should look like. Most importantly, we built an expert team where everyone’s views mattered, were equal and were considered to ensure that we got the best out of the project.
"Co-Production on this project gave us so much inspiration on how much value there is in everyone’s contributions, and co-production will shape our future projects on Forest Ward.”
In addition to improving person centred care for those on Forest Ward, the project led to the development of a number of written resources to help improve the service user experience, all informed by the experiences of those involved. This includes a bespoke service user booklet regarding what to expect when admitted to Forest ward and a patient passport to support staff get to really know the service user.
