public health practitioner portfolio assessment national pilot schemes the story so far

The story so far..

Public

Health

Practitioner

Portfolio

Assessment

National

Pilot Schemes

The story so far

www.totalimprove.com

Total Improvement Process was commissioned to research and present an overview of the UKPHR pilot in December 2010, to evaluate the Kent & Medway pilot in 2011 and the Wales pilot in 2011 and 2012. They also undertake evaluations for the Department of Health, United Nations and equalities organisations. Their evaluation director coaches the City of London Health & Wellbeing Board in its shadow form, Public Health practitioner mentors and two Public Health consultants. They facilitated and sponsored the last UK Evaluation Society national conference and will do so this year.

A note about this presentation’s author

3/10 English SHAs (2/4 SHA “clusters”!)

1 UK country327 Practitioners27 with Portfolios verified (88 expected 2012) 93 Assessors & Verifiers

“The Board was determined to open the Register…there is such turmoil in England that anything people can hang onto has value…and in Wales we also get an insight into the benefit for the employer…..this way we put it on the table and see if people want it.” UKPHR interview

The characters in this story

Nearly 1/3 of the old English SHAs(Half of the 4 new Cluster SHAs)

1 UK country

327 Practitioners fully engaged

1/3 expected to be registered by end 2012

93 senior staff and clinicians trained and experienced in using the standards

The characters in simple headlines

• use of Learning Sets for practitioners

• processes for training and supporting assessors and verifiers

• provision of mentoring

• systems of evidence collection and evidence assessment

• models of coordination,

• models of marketing,

• models of recruitment,

• models of CPD provision

Story-sub-plots: experimentation, emerging evidence base and refinement of:

Very considerable workload for those running it

Practitioners feeling overwhelmed by amount of paper

Frustrations from inevitable first-time-round learning

High volume of hours for practitioners, assessors and organisers

Assessors feeling strengthened in their main role as public health managers

Practitioners gaining confidence from identifying their expertise

Partnership between practitioners and assessors as they step-by-step master the process

Using evaluation early to strengthen learning-as-you-go

Assessors working on a goodwill basis

Story lines…

Story authors….leadership of the Pilot

Shared characteristics

VisionaryDetermined (“obstinate!”)ResilientAttention-to-detail

Six of the leaders we encountered and some of their many roles

Claire BarleyPublic Health Wales

Sylvia BeachamKent Public Health

Joanna Chapman-Andrews NHS South Central

Jenny Griffiths UKPHR

Sally JamesNHS West Midlands

Lillian SomervailleUKPHR

InterventionAim Key Drivers

Example of a Driver diagram

DriversFormal credible standards that everyone agrees with

Creating spread

Buy-in from PH specialists or consultants to act as assessors and verifiers

Coordinated scheme or programme that accredits individual competence

Buy in from individual practitioners

Organisational buy-in sufficient to support the goal and fund it with time and/or money

UK-wide process for the registration ofpublic health practitioners

“...I feel strongly that the reputation of Public Health will be strengthened by registering Practitioners: this will drive up standards and give opportunities for career progression, which will in turn encourage good staff to come into/remain in the profession and seek further development where appropriate.”Practitioner in Kent & Medway

Initial driver diagram for this pilot…

Identify who are most likely to benefit

Establish a supportive CPD culture

Briefings that attract practitioners and help them make an informed decision

Offer enough for the more advanced Practitioners

Offer enough for the Level 5 and 6 Practitioners

Offer enough for the developing Practitioners

Buy in from individual practitioners

Driver

Interventions

Make a well-argued case to senior team

Secure outline agreement for time off-the-job for candidates

Secure an adequate budget

Demonstrate success to fund second Cohorts

Make a compelling case to key employers

Organisational buy-in sufficient to support the goal and fund it with time and/or money

Interventions

Driver

Build a workable structure

Use credibility, local knowledge, professional knowledge and track record to secure active allies

Have a strong picture of what you seek to achieve

Recruit sufficient assessors and verifiers

Commit a very considerable amount of personal pioneering energy to sustain a start-up programme

Design and run a robust evidence and commentary assembly and assessment system

Create effective support process

Recruit practitioners


Interventions (1)

Driver

FunctionPurposeFacilitation and SupportTarget GroupsFrequencyNumber

Commission training/facilitation events for key topics

Define what that isIdentify who can best provide itTrain/support them to provide it

Set up a Mentoring process

Set up Learning Sets

Define what that isIdentify who can best provide itTrain/support them to provide it

Provide relevant CPD

Match those recruited to accessible assessment, guidance and support processes


Interventions (2)

Driver

“…Putting the learning sets on. The organisation was good at letting us have time out to do the learning sets.”

“Number of people were able to complete fairly quickly because of the learning sets Sylvia had been running for all these years. We were prepared!”

“It was the learning sets. I had a colleague on the same team in the same learning set, so we could work together...if I was alone in my team, I would have been less motivated to have finished.”

“There was a network of people doing fast track, so even when we were not on the learning set, it allowed you to talk to people and bounce ideas off.”

“We had 10 geographically spread learning sets initially with about with 10 practitioners in each – and we had three sessions of each?”

Set up Learning Sets

Evaluate and learn fast to simplify and reduce demands

Go electronic as soon as practicable

Work towards a succession strategy to ensure it does not remain unsustainably dependent on a particular Coordinator

Maintain dialogue with counter-parts in other pilots

Link to the "Mother Ship" ie UKPHR


Interventions (3)

Driver

Evaluate and learn fast to simplify and reduce demands

Support Groups • Initial 1:1s • Portfolio development groups facilitated by two • Master classes and learning sequences will be provided to fill knowledge gaps • Better tools, such as time-related project plans and resources • Better IT channels creating one point of email contact • A list of mentors will be provided

Assessment process • Development, with other pilots, of an electronic method of recording assessment. • Assignment of an assessor only when progress has been made through the support programme • Limiting assessor feedback to constructive comment • Clear deadline dates for submission of portfolios to assessor • Clear deadline dates for completion of assessment and submission by practitioner to Verification Panel

Interim Evaluation of Assessment Processes for the Portfolio Development Programme Viv Speller November 2011

Example from South Central of the changes the pilot team have already made or are

considering, taken from a recent evaluation

How much time did practitioners, assessors and verifiers invest?

8 Practitioners invested an average

total of 334 hours completing their application forms and

completing their portfolios

4 Verifiers invested a total of 17

hours verifying 8 portfolios

“ “It was time consuming, but it was also a very good exercise to take stock of what projects I have been involved in.

Example from Total Improvement Process’s Kent

and Medway evaluation summary

Structured professional developmentEncourages reflection / reflective practice

Development of Assessors, Verifiers and Managers

What benefits from being on/involved in this programme did the participants identify?

Structured professional development

Encourages reflection / reflective practice

Recognising and assessing competence across the system - knowing who our troops are and where they are

Structured approach Provides a credible

systematic structure for a workforce who have historically never had one

Professional development

Supports management of other public health staff – give them similar guidance

Supports & encourages reflective practice

Recognise gaps Reward for taking risks:

achieving through supporting others. Recognition of PoD team across UK

Identify achievement

When mentors are line managers to other staff it helps the support to these staff too. You start thinking “perhaps I should be doing this also for the

“

“staff I manage!” The benefits ‘leak out’.

Example from Total Improvement Process’s Wales Public Health

evaluation summary

The story so far..

The questions raised by the story

Public Health Practitioner

Portfolio Assessment

National Pilot Schemes

What is the consistent message you need to give about the £75 Registration fee?

Is the goodwill model sustainable in most likely scenarios?

How big is the potential pool of public health practitioners you need to - and are likely to - register?

How can you collaborate to build a compelling case for Employers?

Are there some emerging ways of supporting the different groups ie experienced and competent practitioners who see the value of recognition and those who are still significantly building their competence?

How do you communicate the measurable impact on confidence and the difference it makes?

Questions faced by the characters in this story…

How do you communicate the increased public confidence this process can bring?

The story so far..

The next chapter?

Public Health Practitioner



Creating spread?

3. Identify the key bodies and individuals who influence further take-up of the process in their countries, regions or sub-regions

6. Lobby key individuals through formal and informal meetings

5. Identify the key publications, journals etc into which you want to input letters, articles and papers about achievement and learning

4. Identify the key events and professional conversations into which you need to input and influence

2. Create a joint spread plan – especially who does what

1. Create and collate credible data that will build a compelling case for spread

Creating spread

3. Identify the key bodies and individuals who influence further take-up of the process in their countries, regions or sub-regions

Policy-shapers (eg Employers, Local Govt Association nationally, emergent Health & Well-Being Boards regionally)

Potential clinical and professional allies (eg Faculty, RCN)

Funders (eg Employers, “Local” Education and Training Boards, Local Authorities)

Potential suppliers (eg Colleges and/or HE Institutions)

Creating spread

1. Create and collate credible data that will build a compelling case for spread

Clarify the input necessary to replicate successful start-up and maintenance of a programme

Assemble key case-studies and stories of success and impact

Assemble the key pilot statistics about achievement

The story so far..

Write on…..!Public Health Practitioner



“Throughout this evaluation, despite the teething problems with the pilot, the commitment, enthusiasm and professionalism of all involved in the programme has been evident.

Its continued success depends on the good will and dedication of many in the public health community, and it is hoped that with the learning from this pilot, and streamlining of processes, the assessment process will continue to be of the highest standards for quality assurance, and will be sustainable within existing resources for future public health practitioners wishing to have their professional contribution to public health formally recognised.”

Interim Evaluation of Assessment Processes for the Portfolio Development Programme Viv Speller for NHS South Central November 2011

public health practitioner portfolio assessment national pilot schemes the story so far

Documents

story slide

kent medway slide

public health consultants

reputation of public

simple headlines slide

department of health

ukphr pilot

wales pilot