At THIS Institute we have an important goal: to create a world-leading scientific asset for the NHS by strengthening the evidence-base for improving the quality and safety of healthcare. Co-created by two exceptional organisations - the University of Cambridge and the Health Foundation – THIS Institute is founded on the guiding principle that efforts to improve care should be based on the best quality evidence. We’re boosting research activity, and creating a new generation of highly trained, multidisciplinary experts with new skills in researching healthcare improvement. Our work is defined by a highly inclusive approach that combines academic rigour with the real concerns of patients and staff. We’re open, transparent, and we do not shy away from difficult subjects. THIS Institute is made possible by the Health Foundation, an independent charity committed to bringing about better health and healthcare for people in the UK. Led by the University of Cambridge, globally renowned for its academic excellence and independence, our strength and influence extends right across the UK. We welcome everyone to help us create an evidence base that supports replicable and scalable improvements to healthcare delivery and patient experiences. Together we’re creating an evidence base to improve healthcare.
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Great day at #THISSpace2024 from THIS Institute (The Healthcare Improvement Studies Institute). I really enjoyed the discussions about over-testing and over-diagnosis and the challenges in #datascience and #healthcareinnovation. I’m thinking about how we support healthcare workers to take safe risks and how we start conversations around the question ‘what’s important to you?’.
In a world shaped by climate change and technological evolution, does the healthcare system need a bold new vision? THIS Fellow Federica Pascale explores what the hospital of the future might look like and how healthcare leaders can prepare for this future. The study suggested the following shifts for the healthcare system: • Future hospitals can act as "control towers", managing patients virtually and delivering services closer to communities. • Services should be led with a transformative and proactive mindset which enables cross-sector collaboration. • Sustainability will be at the core of these estates, embracing net-zero carbon principles; they will be designed to support human and environmental health. • Climate resilience will mean hospitals must be built to withstand extreme weather while providing a healthy indoor environment for patients and staff. Read the full paper: https://ths.im/4eKJz3P Find out more about Federica’s project: https://ths.im/3OjSsqC [Image title and credit: Graphic recording of the hospital of the future. Created by Tom McLaughlin for the INSURE HRE Research Project funded by THIS Institute.]
On November 20, Director of THIS Institute, Professor Mary Dixon-Woods, was awarded an honorary doctorate by the Royal College of Surgeons in Ireland (RCSI) University of Medicine and Health Sciences, to celebrate her work in making a significant difference to healthcare through education. This prestigious honour is given to exceptional people who have made a difference to the world through education, research, or service. Mary’s work involves creating a high quality evidence base supporting improvement in the organisation, quality and safety of healthcare, with a particular focus on understanding problems, co-designing solutions, and evaluating quality and safety improvement interventions and programmes. Mary was absolutely delighted to receive the award, saying that her mission in life is to improve the evidence base for improving quality and safety in healthcare. She said, “I have the great privilege of working with exceptional people at The Healthcare Improvement Studies Institute at the University of Cambridge in achieving this mission. It’s wonderful that the contribution our work has made has been recognised by such a distinguished medical school.” Since establishing in 1784 as the national training body for surgery in Ireland, RCSI has been at the forefront of healthcare education as an innovative, international health sciences university and research institution. Find out more about the award, and Mary, here: https://ths.im/4fWJ6Ni
Most of the conversations around GP access have focussed on the supply and speed of access to appointments, but this limited view hides some of the other, important issues that influence people’s experiences of access. Access to GP services is a dynamic process and in this podcast, Nada Khan and Carol Sinnott, GP and THIS Institute Senior Clinical Research Associate, talk about a recent study which takes a deep dive into the literature around access to general practice to see if the candidacy framework would be a helpful tool to help identify and address some of the problems with access to GP services. Carol explains the seven features of candidacy and how they might help us to understand the ways that patients interact with general practice, what influences their decision to make that first contact, and what stops them from being able to access the services they need. She also discusses some exciting upcoming research - including the development of CandidacyGP. Listen to the podcast here: https://ths.im/4eFjZ06 Read the paper: https://ths.im/3ZaF6mG
What is ‘safety netting’ and is it helpful? ‘Safety netting’ encompasses a range of activities used in clinical consultations to manage uncertainty, including doubts about diagnosis, disease progression, or whether a treatment will work. It often involves advising patients to ‘return if symptoms don’t improve,’ but can also include guidance on monitoring their symptoms, with documented reminders or codes in patient records. The goal of safety netting is to encourage patients to seek additional care, if necessary, while offering reassurance when it’s not. A decade of research highlights that while safety netting is widely practiced, it remains inconsistent, often lacking clarity on symptom timelines and their potential implications. This BMJ Quality & Safety editorial by Georgia Black looks at the practice and function of ‘safety netting,’ and Cox et al’s study of safety netting in hospital internal medicine settings. Read the editorial: https://ths.im/40Rit88
Over-testing and over-diagnosis have become major issues in healthcare quality, safety, and sustainability around the world. In this session we’ll identify the problems caused for healthcare by over-diagnosis and testing and examine the effect that the increasing use of AI for imaging is having in the NHS – including its environmental impact. Natalie Armstrong, Charlotte Augst, Florence Doo, M.D., Mark Oakes, and Zoe Fritz will share their insights, and the session will be chaired by Joanne McPeake, Professor of Nursing at the University of Cambridge. Register: https://ths.im/48O70YH #THISspace2024
Almost 10 million people have surgery in the UK every year. Making sure they receive the best care possible before, during and after their surgery is crucial to good outcomes. THIS Institute, in collaboration with colleagues at University College London, is leading a study that aims to develop a standard set of good quality indicators to measure perioperative care to support monitoring, evaluation and research. If you’re a UK-based healthcare professional and you’re interested in this this important area, we’d love to hear from you. The study involves two online surveys, and you can find out more here: https://ths.im/3O7yXkU
Conversations around access to general practice often centre on limited measures such as appointment supply and demand. In the UK, although we have seen an increasing number of appointments delivered through general practice, measures of patient satisfaction have been falling. Are narrow interpretations of access obscuring what is really happening, and are we capturing what really matters to different patient groups? Join us at THIS Space 2024 to discuss the issues and hear from Helen Atherton, Jake Beech, and Carol Sinnott on possible next steps. Register: https://ths.im/3Cqp6UM #THISspace2024
Closing soon! Opportunity for a research associate specialising in mixed research methods to support our multi-project research programme. Closing 10 November. Apply here: https://ths.im/4ek52k9
Have you met Rosie Lindsay? Rosie is one of our research associates and she is currently working on a project to understand how virtual wards are designed to function and what’s needed to help them achieve their intended outcomes. Virtual wards aim to provide patients with the level of care they’d typically receive in hospital, but from the comfort of their own homes. Rosie’s interest in healthcare began while studying for her Masters in Exercise as Medicine, where she also worked as a guide for visually impaired triathletes training for the Paralympics. We sat down to ask Rosie about her work: Q. What does a typical day look like for a research associate at THIS Institute? A. It varies depending on the project stage. My role involves developing research protocols, writing papers, collecting data such as conducting interviews and observations, attending project meetings, and doing lots of reading! As a team we all make time for lunch together when we are in the office which is a really nice way of connecting with colleagues. Q. Can you tell us a bit about project you’re working on? A. Right now, I am researching frailty virtual wards, also known as “Hospital at Home”. The project is focused on examining how virtual wards were originally designed to function compared to how they operate in practice. One key area of interest is the use of remote monitoring, and we have identified several challenges that make remote monitoring difficult to implement for many patients. We are hoping to publish our findings on this soon. Q. What do you enjoy most about your role? A. I feel that the work is impactful and can genuinely make a difference. We see news stories every day about NHS challenges, and my role provides an opportunity to make a positive difference. Discover more about the virtual wards project: https://ths.im/4feeUNr Want to support our exciting multi-project collaborative research programme? We’re looking for a researcher with a background in health services and strengths in mixed research methods. Find out more and apply here: https://ths.im/3CeInIB