Implementing / Monitoring
Implementing
To maintain momentum get your SAP initiative onto the regular management agenda at the appropriate level. Make sure the cycle of plan, do, check, act is maintained, moving on to tackle the issues put aside for later, taking on new issues, setting new targets. Make use of the workshop tools to work on new issues, or introduce new members of staff to sustainable healthcare.
Lavish praise. Use publicity. Continuous improvement should make everybody feel good.
If SAP is being run as part of a Trust-wide programme, additional support will be available for implementation, e.g.
- Funding pot for SAP initiatives
- Progress check by the Trust lead at 3 and 6 months to identify barriers and offer assistance
- Liaison with other departments and support services (e.g. via a SAP Liaison Group)
- Publicity and recognition of successes
Monitoring
Evaluating the SAP programme:
Use Evaluation Form 1 at the end of the second workshop to find out what the team has gained from SAP so far and how the process could be improved.
Use Evaluation Form 2 six months into the programme to get feedback on the overall experience of SAP and its implementation.
Pass the information on to help us improve too!
Download Evaluation Form 1
Download Evaluation Form 2
Monitoring your SAP initiative:
It is important to monitor the impact of your SAP initiative for two reasons:
- To help you decide where to target your efforts. For example, if a project is having only minimal impact, then you might decide to change tack, or focus energies on a more productive area.
- To celebrate achievements! This is essential – both to motivate the team, and to justify the time and resources spent on the project to those around. You might even be able to argue for further investment in your SAP initiatives, based on the successes to date.
First, clarify the objective(s) of your action plan – these may fall under a range of headings, including:
- Environmental benefit (e.g. reducing the carbon emissions from staff travel)
- Health benefit (e.g. promoting staff health and wellbeing through increased active travel)
- Cost benefit (e.g. reducing money spent on waste sandwiches)
- Quality of care benefit (e.g. empowering patients to take a greater role in their own care)
Secondly, decide how progress toward these objectives could be monitored (these will usually relate to the KPIs chosen in SAP Workshop 2: Action Planning!). Here are some examples:
- carbon emissions: estimate based on data on mileage and mode of transport from staff survey;
- staff health and wellbeing: days off work? Survey of staff perceptions? Fitness tests (you might need approval from the Research Ethics Committee if you take this tack!)
Third, look for cost implications. Cost savings are a powerful motivator for senior management, so if these have not already been considered as one of your primary objectives, it is worth asking now: can you quantify any likely cost savings from your project? Examples could include reduced staff mileage claims, or reductions in staff absence.
Finally, establish a baseline for each of your chosen measures, and decide at what interval you will monitor for changes.