We are all the patient experience
In the last of a series of blogs marking Experience of Care Week 2018, the Chief Nursing Officer for England calls on everyone to continue to talk, share and be inspired:
I’ve been overwhelmed to see how much great work has been going on around the world as part of this second year of Experience of Care Week.
It reminds me of the question I posed for the first Experience of Care Week: ‘Why is the experience of care or the experience of being part of the team delivering care so important?’
It really is quite simple; experiences matter to all those involved in both receiving and delivering care.
We have seen that everyone has a part to play in creating and delivering experiences and we want to promote an all-encompassing approach to improving those experiences of care. Whether that be for the patient who is admitted to A&E after calling for an ambulance; or the carer who supports their family member with daily routine; or the volunteers who work in the hospitals to aid patients through their journey; or even the staff member who is having a difficult shift and gets support from their colleagues. We are all the patient experience.
I was particularly pleased to see that our important work to embed ‘Always Events’ has reached an amazing 100 trusts that have signed up to ways of truly working together with patients, service users, families, carers and frontline staff to improve experience of care.
This is so encouraging to hear as it shows how co-production working is making great movements in the way improvements are designed, tested and implemented by asking ‘What matters most to you?’ As we move towards collaborative care systems, we can learn from these co-production ways of working to design services that will have increased benefits for all.
This week I spoke at the Queens Nursing Institute Annual Meeting about my future vision for Primary Care and Community Nursing and the vital role of nursing, midwifery and care staff in delivering the triple aim of better outcomes, better experiences and use of resources. And today I am visiting Surrey Health Integrated Care services to see how collaborative care systems are playing a vital role in patient pathways.
I continue to be motivated and proud when I see how staff across the health and care system are working to improve experiences of care for patients and those in our care.
Once again, we have joined forces with The Beryl Institute and colleagues in NHS Improvement. We have heard about the global perspectives on Patient Experience and talked about the similarities and differences, shared the challenges and celebrated the successes which happen in the English, U.S and global healthcare systems. It’s sharing with, and learning from each other, that helps us to make these powerful advances, and gain support from those who have tried and tested pathways to increasing experiences. We plan to continue these connections going forward.
As we near the end of this dedicated week of sharing, improving and showcasing our work to do the best for our patients and those we care for, I encourage you all to continue to talk, share and be inspired to make the changes that improve the overall experiences of care. Keep using the hashtag #ExpofCare to keep in touch with the conversations as they continue.
And finally, as you may be aware, this is a particularly important year for the NHS. It’s the NHS’s 70th birthday and I for one will be reflecting on the changes that I have seen through my career, from when I first joined our amazing health service as a student Nurse. The developments that have made the NHS what it is today have only been possible with our dedicated staff, volunteers, carers, patients and families and I encourage you to join in around the country with all the celebrations.
Thank you for all the hard work you continue to do and please do continue to share, showcase and demonstrate your work to improve Experience of Care.
- Get regular updates: #ExpofCare
Professor Jane Cummings
Professor Jane Cummings is the Chief Nursing Officer for England and Executive Director at NHS England.
Jane specialised in emergency care and has held a wide variety of roles across the NHS including Director of Commissioning, Director of Nursing and Deputy Chief Executive.
In February 2004, she became the national lead for emergency care agreeing and implementing the 98% operational standard. She has also worked as the nursing advisor for emergency care. In January 2005, she was appointed as the National Implementation Director for ‘Choice’ and ‘Choose and Book’.
Jane moved to NHS North West in November 2007 where she held executive responsibility for the professional leadership of nursing, quality, performance as well as QIPP, commissioning and for a time Deputy Chief Executive Officer. In October 2011, she was appointed to the role of Chief Nurse for the North of England SHA Cluster.
She was appointed as Chief Nursing Officer for England in March 2012 and started full time in June 2012. Jane is the professional lead for all nurses and midwives in England (with the exception of public health) and published the ‘6Cs’ and ‘Compassion in Practice’ in December 2012, followed by publishing the ‘Leading Change, Adding Value’ framework in May 2016.
Jane has executive oversight of maternity, patient experience, learning disability and, in January 2016, became executive lead for Patient and Public Participation.
She was awarded Doctorates by Edge Hill University and by Bucks New University, and she is a visiting professor at Kingston University and St George’s University, London.
She is also Director and trustee for Macmillan Cancer Support and a clinical Ambassador for the Over the Wall Children’s Charity where she volunteers as a nurse providing care for children affected by serious illnesses.
Follow Jane on Twitter: @JaneMCummings.