Methods that involve coordinating through large scale engagement and national programmes provide focused coordination to commission, stimulate or deliver activity to enable the spread and scale of innovations or improvements.
Three methods have been identified in this category and are summarised below.
Effectiveness
The effectiveness of these methods will vary depending on context, but key strengths of methods which utilise coordination through large scale engagement and national programmes include:
- Can provide effective way of responding to complex, cross cutting and multidisciplinary barriers to spread[i]
- Can provide a way of leveraging diverse perspectives
However, there will be limitations to these methods which may include:
- Other supporting levers for spread may be required in addition to co-ordination and facilitation
- Sustainability may be an issue in social franchising
Methods and Levers
Central co-ordination and centrally commissioned and / or facilitated programmes
Provision of central resource to co-ordinate national rollout of intervention – where this requires cross boundary collaboration, focussed oversight, cross regional management or between multiple national partners e.g. MHRA, NICE, NIHR, charities and patient voice, industry and the NHS Examples include:
- GIRFT
- National Demand and Capacity Team
- AHSN Network national programmes.
Competition and crowdsourcing
Issue a challenge to address an issue to a diverse group of people or organisation to solve a shared problem. Examples include:
Social franchising and licensing
Enables another team or organisation to deliver a proven intervention to agreed standards under a franchise agreement. Turning into intellectual property that can be licenced to others. Primary aim is to maximise social benefit. Examples include:
Practical considerations for use
| Method or Lever | Stage of development * | Audience and scale ** | Resources needed | Timeframe |
| Central co-ordination and centrally commissioned and / or facilitated programmes | Proof of concept to spread | National, targeted to clinical specialty/ intervention | Central support and resource to coordinate; partner resources | 1-3 years |
| Competition and crowdsourcing | Ideation and proof of concept | National, regional or local; targeted to specific problems or challenges | Central resource to coordinate; partner interest and engagement | 6-18 months |
| Social franchising and licensing | Spread | National, targeted to clinical specialty /intervention | Requires exchange between an innovator or franchisor and an adopter site or franchisee, some funding required to implement | Months to years |
* Stages of intervention development – Ideation, Proof of concept, Prototype/Testing, Spread
** Audience and scale – national/regional/local, targeted by clinical speciality / product/ problem
[i] RAND Europe. Galvanising the NHS to adopt innovation. Available from: https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/509629/nhs-adoption.pdf