Supporting better health and social care service design

Dr Chloe Sharp
Sep 4, 2018 · 3 min read

In the UK, health and social care systems are being integrated as part of the 2017–2019 Integration and Better Care Fund Policy Framework. Health, social care, housing and public services will be working together, through local authorities, boroughs and councils, to improve the health and care of local populations. There are local scale integrations such as the New Care Models programme (Vanguards) and Integration Pioneers as well as local devolution or Sustainability and Transformation Plans (STP) to integrate and are steps toward delivering the NHS Five Year Forward View.

Not only will this cause a shift in organisational culture and structure, but this is an opportunity for councils to review their services and service delivery, particularly in a time of austerity measures, with more cuts to come. NHS England, in the development of vanguards have seen some success in user involvement in service design and continuous iteration and could be an approach that is used across local authorities.

There is a pressure for services to become patient-centric and to some degree, personalised, although this may be more likely to be market-led. The metrics for the new integrated programme includes user feedback, showing a move a toward patient-centred approach. Together, we can provide the tools to help local authorities, councils and boroughs, use design thinking to power user research and service design.

FutureGov and Snap Out Partnership

FutureGov is a change agency that has been working with local public sector to transform the way they deliver their services for over 10 years. FutureGov believes in an approach that meets the needs of citizens, by helping organisations change the way they work through organisation-wide transformation to deliver better public services for the digital-era.

Snap Out, is a user research consultancy, with a background in health service design, uses design thinking to develop services that people want to use through research and evidence.

Together, we are providing services and workshops tailored to health and social care to help local authorities, councils and boroughs learn what public and patients want. FutureGov and Snap Out will work together to provide user research and service design alongside our combined expertise in working with public services, social care and health services.

Proven Track Record

Individually, FutureGov and Snap Out have worked with the public sector in health and social care to change services for the better for both digital and non-digital services.

For example, FutureGov has worked with Tri-Borough to design new technology and ways of working to meet the needs of practitioners and families. When working with the London Borough of Hackney, FutureGov has helped to design new processes, ways of working and tools to help improve housing services. With North Tyneside, FutureGov redesigned the front door to social care for adults and children’s services to help better manage demand.

Snap Out worked with the NHS Leadership Academy to research and design a new platform to explore the potential for using a digital platform to bring together information about leadership development and related courses in one place. In the past, Dr Chloe Sharp, has worked in health services and on a number of projects across organ donation, telehealth, NHS Health Checks and sexual health services.

What’s next?

Look out for future blog posts and joint events. Contact FutureGov or Snap Out if you’re interested in finding out more about how we can help your local authority, council or borough use user research and design thinking to develop joint health and social care services that public and patients want.

Dr Chloe Sharp

Written by

MD @ www.snapout.co.uk - a user + market research consultancy powered by design thinking. Grant writing extraordinaire. Listener of customer and user needs.

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