Review of NHS Library and Knowledge Services in West Sussex

Review of NHS Library and Knowledge Services in West Sussex

Facilitators Guide for Focus Groups

Facilitator: Caroline Doherty

Review Team: David Copsey

Louise Goswami

Judy Lehmann

Focus Group agenda & outline structure (90 mins)

Topic 5 Sessions : 7 May – The Causeway & 12 May – Bognor

Topic 6 Sessions: 7 May – Worthing & 12 May – St Richards

Topic 1 – LKS and Clinical Practice – additional notes

The role of NHS library & knowledgeservices is to provide high quality, evidence-based information to benefit the care and safety of patients.

Jane – new BSc starting in Paramedics at Univ Brighton

Jane – access to e-resources, BSUH knowledgeshare, coming to you, quick, raises profile of evidence and LKS. Most clinical areas have intranets, some interests are universal, some specific, help with team building. Bringing into wards

Jane – teaching and learning to make use of e-resources

Nikki – difficult to assess sources, complex, takes time, LKS help

Maggie – make more alive, can be seen as dusty, clinical librarians within wards – knowing latest evidence, own RSS links, proactivity, move forward, doctors have little time, needs to be at fingertips. At point of need, transparency for patients

Sandra – bulletins of new publications

Nikki – medical alerts, looking at historical data – LKS keep archive

Maggie – sharing knowledge when found, capturing for others. LKS providing links, loss of knowledge when people leave, immediacy important

Topic 2 - LKS & Patient Safety and Clinical Governance – additional notes

NHS Organisations are constantly having to provide evidence of their safety and governance arrangements to bodies such as the Care Quality Commission (CQC), NHS Litigation Authority (NHSLA), GMC, Deanery etc. Wrong decisions are often highlighted in the media and can lead to heavy financial penalties.

Nabil – reading things in context is vital, picking up differences and similarities. Understanding of context in other Trusts. LKS role in holding local context and knowledge

Maggie – capturing culture, can’t be forgotten

All – service meets needs of local population

Jane – difficult to find local information, create local reserve of published papers. LKS role in doc creation

Maggie – LKS understanding of end users. Training paths of nurses and doctors, proactive LKS role in Deanery Quality Management. Also specialty specific

Jane – maintain LKS links with Univ

Nabil – different terms for saying same thing, makes word searching difficult

Maggie – workforce moves round esp junior docs

Topic 3 – LKS & Research, Development and Innovation – additional notes

Research, development and innovation is vital to improving patient care.

Jane – understanding of funding bids

Nikki – toolkits for people to use, standard formats

Nikki – use google to find out

Nabil – LKS help with identifying local research networks

Jane – LKS as one stop shop

Maggie – LKS links with R&D, audit, build knowledge base

Nabil – IP issues, staff don’t know who to ask

Sandra – training in critical appraisal; help with identifying good websites, passwords

Topic 4 - LKS &Education and Training – additional notes

All NHS organisations need to continuously developtheir staff. Library & Knowledge Services should have a key role in this development.

Lesley – LKS advertise themselves, offer lots but people don’t know. Refreshers and new courses

Nikki – not everyone knows there is a library

Maggie – LKS location, not in PGMC

Nikki – 24/7, e-learning. Library is study space, accessible

Maggie – balance between quietness and dustiness

Maggie – access to training in library; library as jigsaw builder, knowledge hub, signposting

Jane – traditionally for prof groups, called library. Now info sharing, knowledge. New staff don’t have tradition of using libs

Maggie – physical store, but also centre of things. E-browsing, library has wasted space?, doc supply from other sources, not always having local print e.g. BMJ

Maggie – masterclass packs, duplication, better communication, Deanery could communicate better with Trusts, LKS are key players in contract review. Deanery doesn’t understand end users, LKS can help with understanding. LKS raise profile, e.g. specialty based

Topic 5 –LKS & Commissioning and Public Health – additional notes

Commissioning and public health have become key priorities within the NHS. There is also a shift towards services being more community-based.

Maggie – big topic for Friday pm!

Nikki – Alison Hempstead (teleconference, follow up by Review Team)

Jane – workforce planning needs information to inform decisions. Where does strategic direction come from? Access to local picture – how, where? Direction for local cancer service)

Maggie – need to keep local focus within strategic picture

All – signpopsting, advertising data held by LKS

Lesley – LKS – health needs assessment; finding online literature, grey lit difficult

Maggie – capturing info from moving workforce based on local stuff

Nabil – care with validity of data. Can’t base needs assessment solely on grey lit

Jane – new role for LKS staff, proactive, funding , research. Buy in LKS staff for half day

Maggie- views on libns, away from centre, characters need to change, be lively, new skills, quals. Transition to library and knowledge service; terminology important

Jane – Worthing lib subterranean; Chichester wander for ever; both difficult to find, another world; not everyone will find it

Maggie – lib at Worthing poorly signposted; physical building important, jubilee lib in Brighton interesting

Jane – no real sense of how libs work with PALS

Maggie – libs housed with patient leaflets

Jane – information prescriptions for patients

Final points: other comments:

Jane – personal touch valued, keep, help in crisis

Sandra – prompt service

Use would grow by -

Sandra – knowing whats available

Jane – free service, don’t charge fines, appreciated

Maggie – not end user, sees service 3rd hand, work with MEMs and end users, change history, partnership, through QM process

Nikki – attach links to websites

Maggie – libs are unsung heroes

Nabil – profile building, must reach out to community services, not just for doctors in hospitals

Maggie – depts. Invest in LKS, business case, would help prioritisation

Topic 6 – LKS & Management, Strategic Planning and Corporate Governance

The NHS is a huge employer, with a highly trained workforce, a requirement to keep abreast and tointroduce changes to practice.The retention of staff is very important but there is a high turnover of staff in the NHS. It has been recommended (Hill Report) that Library & Knowledge Services can play a key role in management, strategic planning and corporate governance.

Review of Library and Knowledge ServicesApril 2010