About the trust
The Royal Cornwall Hospitals NHS Trust is the principal provider of acute care services in the county of Cornwall. It serves a population of around 450,000 people, a figure often doubled by holiday makers during the busiest times of the year. The trust employs approximately 5,200 staff and currently has a budget of approximately £290 million. NHS Cornwall and the Isles of Scilly covers the same geographical area. At the time of the project it was working on Tranforming Community Services and going through some signiicant changes. Cornwall Partnership NHS Trust provided the mental health and learning disabilities services across the county. It is now a foundation trust and has absorbed some of the community services previously provided by the PCT.
Background to the project
Following a joint region-wide SHA/trade union workshop, feedback suggested some significant differences in the way in which staff and managers, across the south west, experienced change, with staff often feeling only minimally engaged in their organisation and reporting low morale and a feeling of being unsupported. There appeared to be dissonance between how staff talked about the NHS and how patients and families experienced it.
Cornwall was identified as the pilot health community, working in partnership with the University of Plymouth to undertake a development programme for managers and trade union representatives. The aim was to develop and accredit a new and innovative learning programme which would:
- Promote partnership working at regional and local level to embed the concept of partnership into the culture of the NHS for both management and trade unions
- Develop the knowledge and skills of those involved in partnership working, particularly in relation to developing a joint understanding of key drivers that shape national and regional NHS and trade union strategies and policies.
- In line with NHS South West’s commitment to equality and diversity, to ensure that all development opportunities and partnership working represent and reflect the diversity of staff working in the NHS.
Project delivery
A project steering group comprising senior representatives from the NHS South West, Cornwall Partnership Trust, Royal Cornwall Hospitals Trust, NHS Cornwall and Isles of Scilly , Royal College of Nursing (RCN) and UNISON was established to develop a joint strategy and broad framework for the development programme. The strategy included:
- Shared principles to underpin higher standards of employment practice, leading to improved quality of patient care and services
- Development of a joint manager and union representative programme to work on and share learning and development on an ongoing basis, with clear objectives for effective local partnership working that fit with the organisational culture and aspirations, and a genuine understanding of each other’s perspectives, pressures and drivers
- A joint management/TU launch event; a theatre group to look at partnership and a session on appraisal and awareness of the behaviours and attitudes needed to work in partnership
- Facilitated participants’ accreditation if desired with the University of Plymouth, and shared development of the programme
- Establishment of a project Google site for the development programme, with resources, materials, links, announcements and communications
- Production of project newsletters for wide circulation throughout the healthcare organisations
- Development of a dedicated resource pack, which later became a public access website(http://www.nhspartnersincornwall.com)
Project outputs
This innovative project involved managers and trade union representatives working in partnership on practical work based training accredited by the University of Plymouth. Participants could undertake an optional work based learning module at an appropriate academic level (from level 2 to masters) based upon their work on the programme. Further outputs included:
- Development of a programme on partnership working for the Cornwall health community
- One day launch event with 65 attendees including executive and non-executive directors, managers and trade union officers and representatives
- Accreditation of learning through Plymouth University
- Evaluation of the learning outcomes, products and resources developed
- Genuine improved and sustainable partnership working at local level
- Sharing of a set of resources, principles and a Partnership Framework to enable delivery of similar programmes in other parts of NHS South West and the wider NHS.
An independent, quantifiable and qualitative evaluation was undertaken. Evaluation reports were provided to the steering group which enabled the SHA to identify the extent to which the project aims had been achieved and how the changes and improvements in partnership working and involvement would be sustained over time.
Top tips
1. Develop buy-in at the senior level that is well communicated throughout the organisation. If possible set up a dedicated time for a project lead within the healthcare organisation(s) to work with trade unions on partnership working
2. Appoint key executive leads from staff side and management to the project team to strengthen the commitment towards partnership working.
Further information and contact information:
Sue Simmons, Joint project lead and RCN Associate
susanmsimmons@gmail.com
07766 857165