A strategic shift is happening within the NHS. Driven by numerous factors including a lack of seamless communication between clinicians and healthcare providers, both inside and outside the NHS, a lack of common language and a lack of joined up integrated care is driving the NHS to focus on collaborative working as a way of improving patient care and safety.
By fostering collaborative working, the NHS can address these challenges, which in turn can enhance integrated care and support for patients, service users and carers, increase service capacity, reduce waiting times and ultimately improve patient access to the services they need.
But what does collaborative working in the NHS truly mean, and how can it be effectively achieved? This guide explores the benefits of collaborative working in healthcare, how it can be achieved and provides practical examples to help NHS healthcare managers and responsible officers navigate this vital approach.
What is collaborative working in healthcare?
Collaborative working is an approach where individuals, teams or organisations join forces to achieve a shared goal. To achieve this, a commitment to communication, mutual respect, shared decision making and a willingness to pool resources and expertise together is needed.
So how is this be applied in the context of the NHS?
Collaborative working in the NHS has many touchpoints, with professionals from different disciplines, organisations and sectors working together to provide seamless and coordinated care, where patients are at the centre of a network of interconnected services.
For example, NHS departments working in partnership with the local authorities, social care providers, voluntary organisations, local communities and with the patients, families and their carers. This can range from joint commissioning of services to integrated care pathways and shared information systems.
Collaborative working NHS
Here are some examples of the diverse ways the NHS works collaboratively:
Provider Collaboratives
These are partnerships between NHS Trusts, often working across a specific geographical area. They aim to improve service delivery by sharing best practices and resources, reduce inequalities by addressing barriers to healthcare services and enhance patient care by creating seamless transitions between different services. By working together Trusts can also provide joint training and development opportunities for staff, which in turn fosters a culture of collaboration within the healthcare sector.
Hospital and Primary Care Collaboration
Hospitals are working closely with primary care providers (GPs, community nurses) to improve, for example, patient discharge processes. This involves sharing patient and care information to ensure smooth transitions from hospital to home, developing joint care plans to support patients in the community as well as reducing unnecessary hospital readmissions.
Digital Collaboration and Data Sharing
Collaborations between NHS Digital (now part of NHS England), NHS Trusts, and other organisations are focused on developing and implementing digital tools and platforms to improve patient care by sharing patient data securely and efficiently to enable better decision-making. This can be through enhancing digital services, such as online appointment booking and access to electronic health records.
How to enhance collaboration in the NHS
Integrated Care Boards (ICBs) are pivotal in driving the NHS’s collaborative strategy within an Integrated Care System (ICS). ICBs are the strategic decision makers that are responsible for planning and funding NHS services within their ICS area. ICBs aim to foster seamless integration of health and social care services through collaboration to improve population health.
But how can this be enhanced?
- Communication: In order to enhance NHS collaboration a standard communication protocol needs to be established. Using clear and precise common language ensures a consistent communication approach across all care providers.
- Culture: Establishing regular joint meetings to share ideas and feedback helps further strengthen those communication channels creating a positive organisational culture, valuing mutual respect and continuous improvement. Fostering a shared unified vision and understanding through joint training and aligning goals with shared performance metrics to track progresses creates a culture of collaboration across different organisations and Trusts.
- Leadership: Effective leadership plays a key role in meeting the needs of those receiving healthcare. Whether a service is “well-led” is one of the 5 CQC key questions inspectors use to evaluate the quality of health and social care providers and highlights the importance of leaders who are collaborative. From promoting strong ethical values and providing clear direction to staff and aiding their development, through to identifying areas for improvement such as culture and operational efficiencies.
- Technology: Compatibility of the diverse technologies and systems used by Trusts and healthcare organisations is essential and this can be aided by efficient communication channels and adopting modern digital healthcare technology. Being able to share patient information securely and timely is paramount to seamless patient care and the use of technology in this regard is one of the key points of the Darzi report.
- Governance: Clearly defined governance structures through establishing clear roles, responsibilities and decision-making processes ensures accountability and transparency, which ensures a thriving collaborative environment and positive work culture.
Enlisting an independent healthcare consultant with expertise in workplace culture can offer objective evaluations to pinpoint collaboration barriers, facilitate skill-building workshops for a positive environment, provide guidance on robust governance and communication, and aid in strategies to overcome change resistance.
What are the benefits of collaborative working in health and social care?
By bringing diverse teams together, encompassing various specialisations and perspectives, the NHS can deliver better quality of care. As NHS England states in their Building Collaborative Teams guidance:
“A collaborative approach can improve communication, save time, reduce duplication of effort, improve working relationships and provide a better experience for people who use health and social care services.”
Beyond money saving and time efficiencies, collaboration fosters a culture of shared values and teamwork that promotes mutual understanding of each other’s roles and responsibilities. This, in turn, translates to improved patient experiences, ensuring seamless integrated care between different services, high-quality care that addresses the complex needs of individuals and coordinated care that reduces the risk of errors and adverse events.
How independent consultants can enhance collaboration in healthcare
Independent healthcare consultants play a vital role in supporting the NHS, offering specialised expertise in areas such as healthcare management, strategy and service improvement. These professionals bring an objective, external perspective, coupled with deep industry knowledge, to address complex challenges facing the healthcare system.
The NHS frequently engages independent consultants, particularly for strategic planning, operational efficiency improvements, service redesign and digital transformation initiatives. A notable example is NHS Shared Business Services (NHS SBS), which provides consulting services by drawing upon expertise from both within the NHS and the private sector.
This blend of internal and external knowledge allows for a comprehensive approach to problem-solving, ensuring that the NHS can effectively adapt to the evolving healthcare landscape.
How Verita collaborates with healthcare organisations
Verita’s experience of collaborating with the NHS and independent healthcare providers enables us to identify areas for improvement and evaluate the effectiveness of implemented changes. As experienced healthcare management consultants, we can support organisations in important areas of collaboration including staff empowerment, improved technology, and effective leadership to develop resilient and sustainable healthcare systems.
If you’d like to find out more about how we work collaboratively with healthcare organisations, please book a free consultation or contact Ed Marsden on 020 7494 5670 or [email protected].
