The AF improvement cycle
This cycle was developed through understanding the critical success factors within AF service improvement work undertaken by the AHSNs. It should be used to help you understand the impact of potential improvements across the whole AF patient pathway.
1. UNDERSTAND LOCAL DATA
The first stage in any service improvement is to understand the local AF data, identify trends and the potential areas for improvement. National data sets such as NHS Digital’s Quality and Outcomes Framework, the Sentinel Stroke National Audit Programme and the CVDprevent Audit will help you to do this.
2. STAGES OF IMPROVEMENT
Prepare
Plan how to secure resources
Appoint a team including clinical lead and project manager
Secure senior/ executive support
Agree project governance, baseline metrics and reporting structure
Assess
Analyse local population data and benchmark against peers
Learn from success elsewhere
Review performance of existing services against agreed local or national standards
Engage stakeholders and assess readiness
for change
Plan
Agree an achievable target and how to track progress against baseline performance
Create enablers for change e.g. incentives, practical resources, guidelines
Agree the ‘opportunity for improvement’, target setting and patient cohort
Implement & evaluate
Measure progress against improvement metrics as frequently as possible
Collect and set up feedback from providers and users
Capture and share learning