SCN Children’s & Maternity (C&M) Communications Strategy

Draft 1.3

2

SCN Children’s & Maternity (C&M)

Communications Strategy Version number: 1.3 First published: 2015 Prepared by: Emmerline Irving, Anna Downward-Fletcher, Laura Whixton Anna and members of the SCN Communication Group. Version Control

Date Version

Number

Summary of Changes Author

15.01.2015 V1.0 First Draft EI

10.01.15 V1.1 Comments & Amendments LW

11.02.15 V1.1 Comments & Amendments ADF

12.02.15 V1.1 Comments & Amendments HF

25.03.15 V1.2 Second Draft EI

17.04.15 V1.3 Final amendments from SMT EI

Distribution

This document has been distributed to:

Name Title Date of

Issue

Version

Laura Whixton and

Anna Downward-Fletcher

Quality

Improvement

Leads.

15.01.15 V1

Clare Hillitt, Emma Andrews, Hilary

Farrow

C&M Network

Manager and

Quality

Improvement

Managers

03.02.15 V1.1

Children & Maternity Team 11.03.15 V1.1

C&M SCN SMT 13.014.15 V1.2

Emmerline Irving Quality

Improvement Lead

17.04.15 V1.3

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Contents Contents ..................................................................................................................... 3

1 Introduction .......................................................................................................... 4

2 What do we need to communicate ...................................................................... 4

3 Purpose ............................................................................................................... 5

4 Communication Principles ................................................................................... 5

5 Communication Tools .......................................................................................... 6

5.1 Website ......................................................................................................... 6 5.2 Twitter ............................................................................................................ 6 5.3 C&M SCN E Bulletin ...................................................................................... 6

5.4 SCN Bulletin .................................................................................................. 7 5.5 Conference calls and webinars ..................................................................... 7 5.6 Email ............................................................................................................. 7 5.7 Meetings and Events ..................................................................................... 7

5.8 Sharepoint ..................................................................................................... 7 6 Who do we need to communicate with ................................................................ 8

7 Stakeholder Analysis ........................................................................................... 9

8 Clinical Engagement.......................................................................................... 10

9 Patients and Public Communications ................................................................ 10

9.1 Health literacy .............................................................................................. 10 9.2 Checklist for Communication ....................................................................... 11

10 Communication Report Planning .................................................................... 12

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1 Introduction The Yorkshire and Humber Strategic Clinical Networks (YHSCN) recognises the importance of effective communications as central to the successful delivery of the Children’s & Maternity Strategic Clinical Network (C&MSCN) work programme. This is underpinned by the Yorkshire and the Humber Strategic Clinical Network’s vision statement which is: “…The Yorkshire and Humber Strategic Clinical Network and Senate operate as a catalyst for change across complex systems of care improving quality, outcomes, value for money and patient experience...” S Successful partnerships with Stakeholders C Clinically led commissioning for quality and value N Needs of patients central to our work This Communication Plan contains a description of the means and frequency of communication to parties both external and internal to the C&MSCN. It facilitates engagement with stakeholders through the establishment of a controlled two way flow of information. Please note this communications plan is a working document and will be update as The C&MSCN programme evolves.

2 What do we need to communicate Services for C&M are complex to provide and commission, with a patient pathway that frequently involves services that are provided and commissioned by a wide number of different organisations. The C&MSCN Team would like to inform stakeholders what our principles and strategic objectives are: The aim of the C&M SCN is bring together all the organisations that commission and provide services within Yorkshire & Humber so that that there is effective coordinated work to improve patient experience and outcomes, to identify and address variation. The SCN objectives focus on

- Strategic programmes of improvement - Supporting Commissioner activity that is aimed at improving the quality of care

provided and improving the health outcomes for the population For further details of current communications please see Section 8

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3 Purpose This plan aims to support the delivery of the C&MSCN work plan and identify:

- How to support and provide effective Communication - The communication tools to be used - The groups of people with whom the C&MSCN needs to communicate - Communicating with Patients and Public - Timing of communication activities / Action Plan - How communications will be recorded.

4 Communication Principles In order to have effective communication it is important to adhere to communication principles. The principles below are advocated by Francis J Bergin, Practical Communication, 1976. These principles will be adopted by the SCN

Completeness – The message must bare the necessary information to bring the response you want. It is important to think about the “5’w’s” which are; Who, What, When, Where and Why Conciseness - The message only contains the information relating to the topic and doesn’t have irrelevant information for the audience Consideration - consider your audience will receive the message Concreteness - Be specific rather than vague messages which can lead to miscommunication. Clarity - Ensure the use of

simple language and easy sentence structure in composing the message. Courtesy – Be polite, kind, judicious, enthusiastic and convincing. Correctness - Sentences should have correct grammar, punctuation, and spelling free from any sort of errors

Communication

Completeness

Conciseness

Clarity

Correctness Consideration

Courtesy

Concreteness

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5 Communication Tools

5.1 Website

For up to date information on the C&MSCN programmes, latest news, events links to documents and more…. • Y&H SCN website can be accessed at http://www.yhscn.nhs.uk/ • The direct link to the Children’s section can be found at http://tiny.cc/yhchildren • The direct link to Maternity section can be found at http://tiny.cc/yhmaternity

5.2 Twitter

Before you start to use Twitter, or any other social media tools, you must make yourself familiar with the NHS England Social media and attributed digital content policy. Twitter is a ‘microblogging’ site. It allows anyone to publish online short messages of up to 140 characters. The service requires registration using an email address but is free to use. Go to www.twitter.com to sign up for an account. Once a user has a Twitter account they should add a biography – a 160 character Description of themselves – a webpage link (you could link to the NHS England website – www.england.nhs.uk/), a profile picture, and begin following other Twitter accounts. By following other Twitter accounts you can begin to create a real-time feed of new tweets in your Twitter feed, for example, if you were to follow lots of sports personalities you will see tweets about their sports and lives. Similarly if you follow NHS organisations and people interested in healthcare your feed will fill with healthcare related information. Who you follow is up to you, but anyone and everyone can follow you back.

i Stakeholders including service users, children, young people and their families can keep up to date with the networks latest tweets and follow us on twitter @YHSCN_CM.

5.3 C&M SCN E Bulletin

This bulletin is provided for anyone working with, or interested in, Strategic Clinical Networks and/or the Senate in Yorkshire and the Humber. It is produced and distributed on a quarterly basis and provides an update on the continued work and development of the C&M SCN.

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5.4 SCN Bulletin

This is an internal bulletin provided for anyone working in the Strategic Clinical Networks and/or the Senate in Yorkshire and the Humber. It is produced and distributed on a bi-monthly basis and provides an update on the continued work and development of the SCNs.

5.5 Conference calls and webinars

Conference calls and webinars are fast becoming a popular way to conduct meetings in a time where face to face meetings are becoming more difficult to arrange. Conference calls bring participants together to listen to the audio portion of a call. Participants have the flexibility to dial into meetings and events from their office, the comfort of their own homes (service users) or from schools, colleges and other organisations. This method of communication can also include video conferencing allowing participants to see each other. Webinars are seminars that are conducted over the internet and allow for documents to be shared and viewed. Webinars are hosted by and organisation/group or individual and participants are invited or register to join. Conference calls and webinars can save time and costs that are often accumulated as a result of travelling to meetings and events.

5.6 Email

Email has transformed the way people communicate and is now one of the most common forms of communication. Smart phones, tablets etc… have facilitated access to emails anywhere. Emails enhance efficiency as they are quick to send and quick to respond to, the fact that emails can include discussion with many participants is also a benefit of this form of communication and in some cases has removed the need for / or supported face to face meetings.

5.7 Meetings and Events

Face to Face meetings and events often allow for more detailed and meaningful discussion with participants enabling networking and social opportunities where relationships and be developed and new relationships can be formed. This method of communication also makes it easier to read nonverbal communications such as facial expressions, eye contact, posture and tone of voice all of which can be very insightful and helpful in understanding what is being communicated.

5.8 Sharepoint

NHS England’s Intranet providing information about Teams, Staff, Projects, documents, discussion forums and latest news…

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6 Who do we need to communicate with There is a broad range of internal and external stakeholders, each with unique needs, priorities and views on the provision and commissioning of C&M services across the Y&H SCN. Each of the groups who work or have experienced services can be broadly represented in one of the following categories:

NHSE inc: Specialised

Commissioning

Local Authorities and Health &

Wellbeing

Boards.

Service Users/CYP and

Families.

Primary Care Providers.

C&M Voluntary Organisations

and Charities. CCG C&M Commissioners

Y&H SCNs, C&M SCNs from other regions, AHSCNs

and National Clinical Directors.

C&M Public Health Leads.

Members of the two Clinical

Expert Groups

C&M Service Providers.

Members of the two Strategy

Groups. Commissioning Support Units.

C&M Management

Teams.

PHE

Y&H C&M SCN

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7 Stakeholder Analysis Identifying stakeholders is only the first step. Analysis means gaining an understanding of the:

Influences, interests and attitudes of the stakeholders towards the programme’s outcomes

Importance and power of each stakeholder One technique for analysing stakeholders is to consider each stakeholder in terms of their influence on the programme/project and their potential interest in the programme/project and plot these on a matrix. The matrix below is taken from Best Management Practice – Managing Successful Programmes - 2011 edition: The Stationery Office pg.66 7.1 Influence/Interest Matrix

High

Medium

Low

More face to face

Written

Maintain interest

Active Consultation

Keep informed

Key players – need

strong buy in

HighMediumLow

Inte

rest

of

the

sta

keh

old

ers

in t

he

pro

gram

me

/pro

ject

Inte

rest

of

the

sta

keh

old

ers

in t

he

pro

gram

me

/pro

ject

Influence of stakeholders over the programme/projectInfluence of stakeholders over the programme/project

The level of their importance to the programme/project and its impact on them will determine the level and type of stakeholder engagement the programme should undertake. For example if a stakeholder has low interest and low influence the mode of engagement/communication would be to keep them informed. However, if a stakeholder has high influence and high interest, the mode of engagement is likely to include face-to-face communications. Stakeholders may move to different positions on the matrix as the programme/project progresses and therefore it is important to review the stakeholder analysis regularly.

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8 Clinical Engagement. The C&M SCN aims to communicate effectively with clinicians in primary, secondary and tertiary care within the Y&H footprint, plus other relevant clinicians nationally, in order to obtain advice and views from a wealth of medical knowledge and experience from the clinical experts. We are committed to an approach that:

Engages clinicians in two way communications

Ensures that clinicians are fully informed of all matters relevant to their area of work and all the priorities and aims of the SCN

Ensures that clinicians are fully informed of the national C&M priorities.

Ensures that the SCN seek advice and views from clinicians in all relevant areas

Ensures communications are clear, consistent, timely and effective

Engages clinicians using a variety of methods of communications as appropriate.

Ensures messages are simple and understandable

Seeks feedback on communication methods and regularly checks that these are fit for purpose.

9 Patients and Public Communications It is important when developing communication with patients and the public that the Yorkshire & the Humber, Strategic Clinical Network, Patient and Public Engagement Policy and Frameworks are referred to and used to guide PPE work.

9.1 Health literacy

This is the degree to which individuals have the capacity to obtain, process, and understand basic health information and services needed to make appropriate health decisions. Health literacy is dependent on individual and systemic factors: Communication skills of lay persons and professionals.’ It is important as part of any communication that the audience and their ability to understand what is being communicated is thoroughly thought through. Health literacy considers how a patient or member of the public can understand and act on health information. Patients and the public who struggle to understand health information may have a difficult time following medical recommendations which, in turn, has a negative effect on their health outcomes. Health information can confuse anyone. Clear health communication is essential to helps patients and the public to better understand and act on health information. This can include following instructions after a doctor's visit, treating a chronic illness, or taking a medication properly.

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Quick Guide to Health Literacy - http://www.health.gov/communication/literacy/quickguide/factsbasic.htm

WHO - Track 2 Health Literacy and Health Behaviour – http://www.who.int/healthpromotion/conferences/7gchp/track2/en/

About Health Literacy - http://www.healthliteracy.org.uk/

9.2 Checklist for Communication

Planning the Communication

• What is your vision/message? • What are you doing and why? • What are your overall objectives? • What are you trying to communicate? • Who is your target audience? • Who should know about the work/information? • Who do you need to engage with to address the work/issues? • Who are you trying to affect influence? • How can communication activities help you achieve your objective? • Do you want to push information? Pull information, share learn engage? • What should your audiences do with your work? • What are you trying to achieve with your audience?

Prepare the Communication

• What are your key messages for your audience? • What will be your communication goals? • What communication related challenges are you facing? • What are the main issues you are dealing with, where communication can

help?

• What channels of communication will you use? - Electronic – web, email discussion group, social media - Face to Face – workshop, training, event - Print – publications, leaflets posters - Other media – TV, Radio

• Out Puts – What will you transmit? • Activities – what will you do – how will you communicate?

- Organise workshops - Write publications

• What are your milestones and timeline? • What do you need to ensure the strategy reinforces, rather than hinders your

approach?

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Do – Implementing the Communications

• What are the key elements of quality that you need to keep in mind to make your communications credible?

• What budgets do you have/how much do you need? • What capacity (skills & time) do you have to carry out your activities? • What can you do yourself and what needs (external) support? • Who (internally/externally) needs to be involved in the communication? • Who will carry out what activity?

Evaluation

• What would you consider measures/statements of success? • How are you planning to monitor your expected success? • How will your monitoring link back to improved planning? • What could have been improved? • Where did you lack skills/capacity?

10 Communication Report Planning The C&MSCN will develop a communications action plan to support this strategy. i NHSE A Guide to Twitter - Please contact england.web@nhs.net for further information and assistance.