Decision Making Blog #3: The black hole of the status quo

Learning is one of the joys of teaching. And I’ve learnt a lot while helping people develop their decision making skills.

Decision Making Blog #2: Two under-appreciated sources of leadership power

Some forms of leaders’ power are obvious. Leaders hire and they fire.

Decision Making Blog #1: Better decision making: a neglected route to improvement?

There are two main routes for health and care services to improve the health of the populations they serve. The

Decision making - a series of blogs on decision quality

No more suffering in silence, we want to talk about the menopause

To mark International Women’s Day on March 8, Karen Bradley, Principal Consultant at the Strategy Unit, and Susan Blakey, Senior People Consultant at MLCSU, two advisors involved in the recent project, ‘Menopause and the NHS Workforce’, discuss its significance and share what they want to see happen as a result of the published report.

Analysts, we need to talk about…….

The future looks incredibly promising for ana

Insight 2022 - Day 4 - The future of healthcare analytics

The future of healthcare analytics.

Insight 2022 - Day 4 - Smarter decision-making for your population

Smarter decision-making for your populationNHS England has identified Population Health Management (PHM) as a core strategic aim f

Insight 2022 - Day 3 - Decision-making in the 21st century NHS – how does it really work?

Decision-making in the 21st century NHS – how does it really work?The NHS Long Term Plan placed an emphasis on better use of data

Insight 2022 - Day 2 - How the science of systems thinking can support the craft of wise decision making – A GP practice case study

How the science of systems thinking can support the craft of wise decision making – A GP practice case studyIf yo

Insight 2022 - Day 2 - Understanding the links between delayed discharges and hospital congestion

Understanding the links between delayed discharges and hospital congestionIn January 2022 NHS figures showed that

Insight 2022 - Day 1 - ICSs working together to be intelligence-led organisations: lessons from history

ICSs working together to be intelligence-led organisations: lessons from historyHow can Integrated Care Systems (ICS

Menopause and the NHS workforce

Now with the World Menopause Day 2022 update. What is it like to experience menopause as an NHS employee? And what is its impact on both the individuals and the organisations they work for?

Helping ICSs to reduce inequalities in access to planned care

Are there inequalities in access to planned care? If so, what are they? Which groups ‘gain’ and which groups suffer? And what could be done to address any inequalities? In pursuing their objective of reducing inequalities, what could Integrated Care Systems (ICSs) do? What strategies and approaches are likely to be successful?

What matters when waiting? – involving the public in NHS waiting list prioritisation

As the NHS emerged out of the pandemic, it was confronted with the challenge of not only recovery of unprecedented waiting lists, but with inequalities which required attention. NHS leaders challenged providers to restore inclusively and at University Hospitals Coventry and Warwickshire NHS Trust, we have developed a way of doing just that, whilst simultaneously reducing waiting times for all.

INSIGHT 2022 21st November - 2nd December

The Midlands Decision Support Network in association with The Strategy Unit are hosting INSIGHT 2022 our annual festival of learning and sharing events for the NHS, local government and other partners across health and care.

Infant-feeding problems during the pandemic

Emergency department attendances fell dramatically and systematically during the early phases of the COVID-19 pandemic. This effect was almost universal, affecting people from all parts of society and for all health conditions. But in our recent paper we highlight one notable exception to this rule -presentations at Emergency Departments for infant-feeding problems increased during the pandemic.

What was the question again?

We hear a lot about what’s stopping the NHS making the most of its army of talented analysts. Some say we just need more data, or data of better quality. Others point to deficiencies in our infrastructure, IT kit or the software we use. But I’m not so sure. For me the biggest shortfall is in good questions that we can feasibly address.

Inequalities in access to healthcare - what’s our next move?

Our research, published in the Lancet Regional Health Europe, highlights substantial inequities in access to elective hip replacement surgery. We found no evidence that these inequities reduced between 2006 and 2016.