Presenting the Business Case

1
The Health Sector Whole Organisation Approach
(WOA) to Literacy, Language and Numeracy (LLN)

• Presenting the Business Case

2
A Whole Organisation Approach is

• About helping your organisation meet its existing
  and future priorities and plans
• Achieving financial and performance stability
• Accountability ensuring that all staff are fit
  for purpose
• Developing local workforce capacity and
  capability
• Creating a flexible and 21st century workforce
• Becoming a healthcare provider of choice

3
The Health Sector in a Global Market

• The choice agenda places the health sector
  firmly in the realms of the wider economy.
• The health sector is not unique it is by far
  the largest employer, sitting within an economy
  that has one of the lowest levels of productivity
  in Europe partly due to one of the lowest
  levels of literacy and numeracy.
• Four out of five jobs now being created require
  knowledge and/or technical skills equivalent to
  A level standard.
• How does this sit in a country where
  approximately one in five adults has less
  literacy than is expected of an eleven year old
  child? (Moser Report, 1999)

4
The WOA is NOT yet another agenda

• It is not an agenda that can wait until there
  are less pressing priorities it is ABOUT
  achievement of these priorities.
• It is not about creating something new it is
  about using the EXISTING framework of your
  organisation.
• A WOA to LLN in the health sector is one in which
  LLN is developed and incorporated into your
  organisations existing systems and processes.
• Strategic leadership and management is therefore
  the key to its success.

5
The Scale of Need

• 46 of the population have numeracy skills below
  level 1
• 72 have numeracy skills below level 2
• 14 have literacy skills below level 1
• 56 have literacy skills below level 2
• (Source The Skills for Life Survey
  Implications for Health Social Care, 2004)

6
The Levels Explained
7
But your organisation doesnt employ staff with
LLN needs?

• THINK AGAIN!
• 30 of graduates have literacy skills below level
  2
• 56 of people below level 1 are in work and of
  these one in five are working in managerial or
  professional occupations
• 50 of individuals at entry level 1 felt their
  reading skills were good or fairly good
• (DFES Survey, 2003)

8
The Spiky Profile

• The LLN agenda in the health sector is not
  primarily about people who cant read or do
  simple arithmetic. Many staff will have what is
  termed a spiky profile.
• This expression describes someone who may well be
  highly qualified (academically or vocationally)
  but may have significant skill gaps in language,
  literacy or numeracy.
• Such gaps often impact negatively on overall job
  competence, with significant cost implications
  for your organisation, both financially and,
  fundamentally, in terms of patient outcomes.

9
Here are just a few examples

• The consultant who does not communicate
• The facilities lead who is reluctant to
  complete incident report forms
• The nurse who is unable to accurately calculate
  dosages
• The supervisor who never holds team meetings
• The medical records clerk who files incorrectly
• The line manager who avoids doing appraisals and
  PDRs
• The Healthcare Assistant unable convey
  information in a patients notes
• The cleaner unable work out ratios for cleaning
  fluids
• The policy writer who doesnt understand the
  importance of
• readability etc

10
And the risks to your organisation of not
adopting a WOA?

• Higher risk of incidents
• Higher risk of safety episodes
• Higher risk of infection
• Higher risk of complaints
• Increase number of investigations
• More adverse publicity

11
And the Bottom Line?

• Increased costs
• Failure to meet national policies and standards
• Gaps in HR Performance Framework
• Gaps in Clinical Governance Framework
• Failure to comply with statutory requirements,
  such as Health and Safety Legislation
• Failure, as an employer, of ensuring that all
  staff are competent and fit for purpose

12
The Way Forward

• A WOA offers health sector organisations a way
  forward that is sustainable and has the potential
  to make a positive impact on key priorities and
  plans.
• It requires the full support of the CEO, the
  Board and the SMT.
• Strategic leadership and management is key in
  order to embed LLN into existing systems and
  processes.

13
First Steps

• Identify a board level champion. CEO to make a
  clear statement of commitment.
• Identify the key people and resources in your
  organisation who will have the responsibility of
  implementing this approach. It is important to
  include key leads across the organisation, not
  just education and training and KSF leads.

14
Plan to Succeed

• Find out how other health sector organisations
  have started to implement a WOA.
• In the short term, it is likely that you will
  need to develop a clear strategy and action plan
  in order to get to the point where your
  organisations own structures and systems become
  the framework.
• Remember, a WOA is not about trying to do
  everything at once! Prioritise your action so
  that it has the greatest impact on your current
  priorities and plans.