Table 1 Factors proposed to affect likelihood of sustainability
Domain | Factor | Issues being explored |
|---|---|---|
Process | Factor 1: Benefits beyond helping patient | Whether in addition to helping patients there are other benefits that will make a difference to daily working lives or make things run more smoothly such as reduced waste or duplication. |
Process | Factor 2: Credibility of the benefits | Whether benefits to patients, staff and the organisation are visible, are believed by staff and can be described clearly. |
Process | Factor 3: Adaptability of improved process | Whether changed processes will continue to meet the need of the organisations and can be maintained when an individual or group of people who initiated it are no longer there. |
Process | Factor 4: Effectiveness of the system to monitor progress | Whether data are easily available to monitor progress or assess improvement and whether there are systems to communicate this in the organisation. |
Staff | Factor 5: Staff involvement and training to sustain the process | Whether staff play a part in the implementation of changes to processes and the extent of training and development of staff to help sustain these changes |
Staff | Factor 6: Staff attitudes towards sustaining the change | Whether staff ideas are taken on board, the opportunity they are given to test these ideas and their belief that this is a better way of doing things that should be preserved. |
Staff | Factor 7: Senior leadership engagement | Whether credible and respected senior leaders are seen as promoting and investing their own time in changes. |
Staff | Factor 8: Clinical leadership engagement | Whether credible and respected clinical leaders are seen as promoting and investing their own time in changes. |
Organization | Factor 9: Fit with the organisation's strategic aims and culture | Whether the changes being made are seen as an important contribution to the overall organisational aims. |
Organization | Factor 10: Infrastructure for sustainability | Whether staff, facilities, equipment and policies and procedures are adequate to sustain new processes. |