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Engaging staff helps improve imaging services

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In recent years, Wye Valley NHS Trust has seen a 10% rise in annual demand for most imaging services and a 50%-60% rise in demand for CT in particular. To meet this rising demand within the NHS targets for turnaround times, the Trust asked Philips to help them make best use of their capacity and staff resources and thereby improve the quality and productivity of its imaging services.

“We want to modernize the radiology department at Wye Valley NHS Trust, bringing in the latest technology and empowering our staff to lead change and truly transform patient care,” said Robert Griffiths, Radiology Services Manager. “We wanted a partner who could help us look at our department from a fresh perspective and help us make a step-change towards improving our department for staff and patients.”

Since the training, staff are starting to see things from a different perspective and think in a new way. We are changing people’s mindset and I have high hopes for what we can achieve together.”

Robert Griffiths, Radiology Services Manager

Wye Valley NHS Trust

Our approach

The Philips consulting team made a specific proposal for the imaging service improvement project, which is part of an 11-year strategic partnership for Managed Services in radiology with Wye Valley NHS Trust. The customized consultancy approach included the following key phases:

Assess the current level of imaging performance, based on data analysis, stakeholder interviews, observations and a staff survey to establish a baseline and identify critical areas for improvement
Co-create – insights from the assessment were used to guide development of the training plan and select the areas for the focused improvement project(s)
Transform – Philips consultants:
- developed and delivered foundation level training to all imaging staff, from radiologist to radiographers and booking clerks. It covered the people aspects, flow principles and the tools of quality improvement for healthcare organizations
- supported delivery of a focused improvement project to the MR group in the form of six learn-do cycles over a 12-week period, including mapping of the value stream, understanding capacity and demand, and improving the working and patient environment
- collaborated with the Trust’s clinical and management teams to make prioritized recommendations for improving quality and patient throughput during the entire project
Sustain – Philips consultants assisted in ensuring that the right data and review practices were in place to support a culture of continuous improvement and sustain the benefits realized

The six learn-do training cycles used in the focused improvement project to the MR group

All radiology staff attended the foundation course and that was very worthwhile for team building and understanding the challenges.”

Liz Williams, MR Superintendent and Focused Improvement Project Lead

Wye Valley NHS Trust

The Results^*

The new approach to quality improvement is expected to help the Trust improve workflow to increase productivity by 5% - 10% per year. Some process improvements have been made to streamline MR exams, such as having a patient go directly to the MR room and radiographers working more closely with radiologists to standardize sequences. It has also helped engage staff in the improvement process. Looking ahead, the Trust plans to appoint a lead and support ongoing quality improvement for modalities across the imaging department. They are also looking at rolling out the focused improvement project approach to other modalities.

^*Results from case studies are not predictive of results in other cases. Results in other cases may vary.

Wye Valley NHS Trust is based in Hereford, UK, and provides healthcare services to its rural community through the Hereford County Hospital and three community hospitals. The Trust has around 3,000 staff members and provides a range of specialist and generalist functions. The Trust provides integrated care and is committed to improve the well-being, independence and health of the people of Herefordshire and across the Welsh border into Powys.

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Meet our team

Steve Lee

Senior Consulting Manager, UK & Ireland region

Steve has extensive consulting experience in managing improvement, innovation and change in healthcare and other sectors. His expertise focuses on managing transformational change and improving innovation capabilities within healthcare, covering strategy, process and people. Steve is a chartered engineer by background and has also trained in occupational psychology.

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Imaging Service Improvement

Assessment, strategic guidance, and implementation support focused on streamlining radiology processes and increasing patient throughput as well as the overall patient experience.

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