Second cohort of health and care professionals announced as Aspiring Improvers

UCLPartners has selected 12 individuals to partake in the second round of our Aspiring Improvers programme.

The participants come from a range of organisations across North Central and East London. They are in roles from nursing and medicine to patient support and information, and include a variety of allied health professions including radiology, speech and language therapy, operating theatre support, optometry and biomedical science.

The programme, which piloted this year, will provide training and development to help participants build their skills, knowledge and understanding of improvement. In addition, it will connect people at the start of their improvement journey and provide opportunity for open dialogue in a safe environment away from their usual workplace, offering time and space to reflect and plan.

Kate Hall, Chief Operating Officer at UCLPartners said:

We are really thrilled to launch the second cohort of the UCLPartners Aspiring Improvers programme, which focuses on peer support and development for those who have recently started their work in improvement. We received a very high calibre of applications, and these highlighted the significant passion and enthusiasm for improvement from people who perhaps wouldn’t normally have access to this type of multi-professional and cross-organisational peer learning. We look forward to working with this cohort and are eager to see how both the participants and the programme develops over the next 12 months.

The Aspiring Improvers alumni from 2018 found that the programme really helped them embed improvement methods in their own practice and spread that learning throughout their organisations. One of the most significant impacts from our pilot cohort has been the increase in confidence that all our participants have reported, both in leading improvement projects and in associated skills such as presenting and influencing others. On completing their programme projects, most participants have gone on to find other projects in their organisation to lead and are doing so with the skills and confidence they developed over the last 12 months.

We asked last year’s cohort what they got out of the Aspiring Improvers programme and here’s what they said:

I feel that the biggest benefit was working through QI methodology gradually over time, with worked examples, and constantly applying it to a real QI project which I was working on concurrently. I now understand each aspect and feel much more confident to lead projects and to do them in a way that fits into my working life. I have also increased my confidence in working with a group and voicing my thoughts.

Jessica Salkind, Junior Doctor

It has been very useful to learn about the framework for evaluating effectiveness in Quality Improvement. I have learned how to present data and evaluate data, and also a lot of the jargon surrounding QI, which is necessary when soliciting support from managers. As a doctor, as you become more senior, you are expected to become involved in hospital management and so this has been a great introduction to this aspect of medicine.

Valerie Lan, Junior

I feel more confident with regards to my presentation skills. I am more knowledgeable of the subject matter, which I can share with others. I feel that being recognised for my potential and having the benefit of the programme which allowed me to design and lead on a QI project has been a contributory factor in my recent promotion. I am now more confident that I can influence my colleagues positively.

Lorein Zanamwe, Nurse