30 June 2023
24 staff from across HSC have recently graduated as Quality Improvement Leaders. The Scottish Improvement Leaders (ScIL) programme is a QI course designed to develop future leaders in improvement.
The 2022/23 ten-month ScIL programme, funded through Health and Social Care Quality Improvement (HSCQI), was delivered jointly by QI experts from the HSCQI Hub and Network and NHS Education for Scotland (NES). ScIL aims to develop individuals to design, develop and lead improvement projects, generate support for change and provide expert improvement advice. The programme is aligned to a Level 3 QI qualification in the Quality 2020 NI Attributes Framework and Key Principles Document. HSC staff in clinical and non-clinical roles took part, including representatives from Trusts Primary Care, RQIA and PHA. All participants had to undertake a quality improvement project themed around the regional HSC priority of Timely Access to Safe Care.
One of the ScIL graduates Harry Miller, Interim Service Manager, Lifeline commented:
‘The ScIL programme really taught me about the methodology of quality improvement, whereas before I would have relied more so on my intuition and experience. The biggest revelation for me was that change doesn’t have to be big – the idea that a small, rapid test could effect change was instrumental to my learning. I have already explored spread and scale of my project to improve equitable access to Mental Health support across the region. I have also identified a potential new Quality Improvement project working collaboratively with one of my ScIL peers in NIAS.’
Harry pictured above with his ScIL mentor Dr Iain McDougall
In the final weeks of the ScIL programme each graduate prepared a poster to describe their improvement project and their key learning over the course of the programme. These were displayed at a recent HSCQI regional event as part of the ScIL Graduation.
Levette Lamb and Clifford Mitchell, Regional Senior Improvement Advisors with the HSCQI Hub, who were programme faculty, agreed that the participants had worked hard on the intensive programme and demonstrated active learning in their new QI skills. They also commended their HSCQI colleagues who had mentored ScIL participants and those who helped deliver the virtual ScIL sessions, sharing their QI experience and learning with the ScIL participants.
The ScIL graduates now become part of the HSCQI Alumni and will have opportunities to network and access further HSCQI learning sessions. Having completed ScIL it is hoped that the graduates will be able to mentor, lead and contribute to local and regional improvement work.
To find out more about QI and the HSCQI Network see hscqi.hscni.net and follow @HSCQI on Twitter.