Abstract
The ‘collaborative’ method, developed by the US Institute of Health Improvement, has succeeded in motivating staff and responding to patients' concerns about acute in-patient psychiatric care across 37 trusts in the Northern, Yorkshire and Trent regions. The method puts into practice the new values underpinning government policies on ‘modernising’ and ‘shifting the balance of power’ in the NHS, i.e. seeing things through the eyes of patients, empowerment of frontline staff, learning networks and focus on measured outcomes. The evaluation suggests that organisational and management culture crucially determined the level of achievement of the trusts taking part in the collaborative. Evaluations of other collaboratives have raised doubts about the sustainability of the improvements achieved. It is argued that refining the collaborative method is less important than incorporating its principles into the existing management and organisational cultures of NHS trusts, and the leadership styles of chief executives and clinical directors.
Highlights
Is this yet another fashion that will sweep through the NHS only to disappear without a trace? This paper argues for optimism if the nature of the challenge is shifted from improving the method and implementation of collaboratives to changing the managerial and organisational cultures in which they are applied
National and regional surveys carried out by the Sainsbury Centre for Mental Health (1998) and the Northern Centre for Mental Health (Kennedy, 2001) found that patients, carers, professionals and managers alike were very concerned about poor standards of care in acute psychiatric in-patient wards
Inter-professional differences in perceptions that are notorious for inhibiting progress in the mental health field began to evaporate when exposed to patients’ real and recent experiences
Summary
The evaluation suggests that organisational and management culture crucially determined the level of achievement of the trusts taking part in the collaborative. Experience in the US and UK suggests that the service improvements achieved are often modest, and only a small proportion are sustained a year or more after completion of the collaborative programme (Kilo, 1998; Robert et al, 2002). Is this yet another fashion that will sweep through the NHS only to disappear without a trace? Is this yet another fashion that will sweep through the NHS only to disappear without a trace? This paper argues for optimism if the nature of the challenge is shifted from improving the method and implementation of collaboratives to changing the managerial and organisational cultures in which they are applied
Sign-in/Register to view highlights & summary Sign-in/Register to access full text options 
Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a callDisclaimer: All third-party content on this website/platform is and will remain the property of their respective owners and is provided on "as is" basis without any warranties, express or implied. Use of third-party content does not indicate any affiliation, sponsorship with or endorsement by them. Any references to third-party content is to identify the corresponding services and shall be considered fair use under The CopyrightLaw.
