This discussion forum will focus on the first step in program planning: assembling the change team. 1,Review the Process of Program Planning document posted in the Week 1 module. The

Implementing Change through Planned Interventions

Step 1: Create a Change Team

Objective: To create a team of leaders and staff members with the authority, expertise, credibility, and motivation necessary to drive a successful initiative.

· Ensure key leadership representation: senior leadership, front-line leadership

· Identify an Executive Sponsor

· Ensure key expertise representation: clinical/technical, medical teamwork, process improvement and trending techniques

Step 2: Define the Problem, Challenge or Opportunity for Improvement

Objective: To specifically state the problem, challenge, or opportunity for improvement that will be targeted by your intervention; and to identify the involved process. ..

· Identify a problem, challenge, or opportunity that you feel could be improved with enhanced medical teamwork.

· Identify the process during which the target problem, challenge or opportunity occurs by stating what the process is, who is involved, and when and where it occurs.

Step 3: Define the Goal(s) of your Intervention

Objective: To succinctly state in measurable terms exactly what you hope to achieve with the

Intervention used in your program

· For each goal, state in one sentence in measurable terms what you hope will be achieved, who will be involved (whose behavior will change), and when and where the change will occur.

Step 4: Design an Intervention

Objective: To design an Intervention that will address your target problem, challenge or opportunity and achieve your stated goals.

· Flowchart or map the process during which the problem, challenge or opportunity occurs – write the process steps as they currently occur identifying who is doing what, when, with what tools.

· Study the process to identify risk points where things could go wrong and lead to a recurrence of the target problem.

· Review the evidence-base, brainstorm, and elicit input from key personnel to design your intervention – state what tools and strategies will be implemented and who will use them, when and where.

· Flowchart the redesigned process as it would look with the intervention in place to identify potential benefits and negative effects.

Step 5: Develop a Plan for Evaluating the Effectiveness of Your Intervention

Objective: To develop a method to determine if your Intervention achieved your goals.

For each goal, create an evaluation plan including:

· Change Team member responsible for data collection, analysis, and presentation

· A measure and target ranges for the measure.

· Study design (usually pre- and post-intervention study)

· Sample (study group) or data source with comparison group

· Methods for data collection, analysis, interpretation, and presentation.

· Timelines for baseline and for post-intervention data collection and analysis

· Resources required

Step 6: Develop an Implementation Plan

Objective: Part A: To develop a plan for training or educating your staff/patients to successfully implement your intervention.

Part B: To develop a plan for putting your intervention into place.

Part A: Develop a Plan for Staff and/or Patient Training

· Identify your Instructors, trainee audience(s) and their specific training requirements. Determine who needs to be trained on what knowledge/skills and by when in order to achieve your aims.

Part B: Develop an Implementation Plan for the Intervention

· Ensure you have collected all baseline data before implementing the intervention.

· Identify the person(s) responsible for implementation.

· Determine how you will implement your intervention in order to achieve your aims.

· Identify who will use what team strategies and tools, when and where.

· Create an implementation timeline.

Step 7: Develop a Plan for Sustained Continuous Improvement

Objective: To develop a plan for continuous process improvement with your intervention, including plans for ongoing assessment of the effectiveness of the intervention, for sustainment of positive changes, and for identification of opportunities for further improvements.

· Develop a monitoring plan for ongoing assessment of intervention effectiveness including measures and target ranges; data source; methods for data collection, analysis, and use for continuous improvement; and person(s) responsible.

· Develop a plan for sustaining and spreading positive changes including rewards, feedback, integration, ongoing teamwork coaching, and sharing lessons learned.

Step 8: Develop a Communication Plan

Objective: To create a communication plan targeting major stakeholders that will generate initial and on-going support for your program and promote the maintenance and spread of positive changes.

· Identify persons or groups whose support will be important for achieving your intervention goals and for maintaining positive changes. Consider organization and front-line leaders, staff directly involved in the intervention, patient groups, and other units impacted by the intervention.

· Develop a communication plan for each identified group including your goals for communication, who will get the information, what information you will communicate, when and how you will communicate it (e.g., reports, presentations, e-mails).

· Identify Change Team member(s) responsible for implementation and oversight.

Step 9: Putting it All Together: Write the Action Plan

Objective: To generate a written Action Plan, based on steps 1 through 8, which will function as your

“How-To-Guide” for every component of your program.

Ensure that your final Action Plan includes all of the following:

· Identification of the Change Team

· Identification of the problem, challenge, or opportunity that will be targeted by the program

· Stated goals of your program intervention

· Detailed description of your intervention

· A plan for evaluating the effectiveness of your intervention

· An implementation plan for both staff or patient training and for your intervention

· A monitoring plan for ongoing assessment of the effectiveness of your intervention

· A communication plan to generate support for the program and to promote maintenance and spread of positive changes

· Timelines

· Resources required