producing information for patients about the quality of general practice services equip open...
TRANSCRIPT
Producing information for patients about
the quality of general practice services
EQuiP open meeting, Brussels, November 2004
The research team
Jenny Noble, Rod Sheaff, Martin MarshallNPCRDC, University of Manchester
Helen Davies, Glyn ElwynDepartment of Primary Care, University of Swansea
Kieran Walshe, Manchester Centre for Health Care Management, University of Manchester
Heather WatermanSchool of Nursing, Midwifery and Health Visiting, University of Manchester
Aim
To publish information about the quality and range of general practice services which is useful to patients
What do we know?
1. Information can be a useful lever to engage and empower2. Providing information is an important part of UK policy3. There are some problems with public reporting4. There is not a major demand for information from the public5. The content and presentation format of much of the performance information aimed at the public is poor6. Minimal information is available about primary care services
Our approach
An action research project
• Flexible• Focuses on stakeholder engagement• Uses research team expertise• Feeds findings back into process
Stages of the project
1. Recruitment of participants
2. Fact finding
3. Feedback
4. Planning
5. Action
6. On-going evaluation
7. Evaluation of outcomes
Results
1. Public engagement
• Supportive in principle• No major demand• Reflects general challenges
of involving the public• Research team driving
process
2. Use of comparisons
• Don’t like league tables• Don’t like word ‘report’• More interested in commitment to
improve than in relative performance
• Strong sense of social solidarity with NHS and commitment to practices
3. Targeting the audience
• Public reporting requires more than putting routine data into the public domain
• The public have very specific information needs
• Need to target sub-groups
4. How information is used
Information-telling mode:
• rational decision making• egocentric• consumerist
Knowledge-construction mode:
• social processes• complex, emergent, interactive• collectivist
5. Source of information
• cynical about politicisation• desire for independent view• demand for partnership
6. Content and presentation
NothingSocial
marketingConsumerism
6. Content and presentation (1)
• Hard copy and web-based• Present content as hierarchy
• context
• structures
• processes
• outcomes
• Beware overload
6. Content and presentation (2)
• Break up text• headings, bullets, FAQs• make scanning easy
• Use visual displays• Use narratives
The product: ‘Your guide to general practice’
1. Service user as sole target
2. Clear purpose – to engage
3. Joint ownership – independent + patient + practice
The product: ‘Your guide to general practice’
4. Focus on individual practices but standardised format and comparisons with local mean
5. Information presented in hierarchy
6. ‘crystal mark’ presentation
7. Hard copy and web-based versions
Summary
• The public in the UK want to know more about the range and quality of general practice services
• They do not want to be treated like ‘consumers’• They need to be involved in decisions about the
content and presentation format of information