Developing a shared view of innovation

We are developing a shared understanding of how health and social care providers can enable innovation

Historically there has been an emphasis on ‘what good looks like’ and the support needed by innovators to drive innovation in health and care. There has been relatively little focus on the important role of health and social care providers in the innovation process, or on the inclusion of the voice of people receiving care, both in terms of invention and adoption of innovation. Recognising this, a group of national health and social care organisations have come together to develop a shared view of the principles to enable innovation in health and social care providers.

The evidence we have suggests six principles are important

The principles set out here are based on reviews of academic and other literature, CQC inspection reports, engagement with over 60 health and social care organisations, including visits and interviews with eight acute NHS trusts to understand the drivers and barriers to adoption of four nationally-endorsed innovations.

The principles are relevant to all health and social care providers – but how they are applied will vary

While these principles are always important, the evidence does not suggest that there is a single methodology for innovation that all organisations need to follow. It is likely that the principles will be implemented differently in large organisations like NHS trusts compared to smaller, independent social care providers. To illustrate what the principles might look like in practice, we have included a series of case studies in this publication.

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The six principles

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Innovation and why it is important