When starting your PROSPER Quality Improvement programme you need to have baseline data in order to know what your current position is and to be able to measure if your improvements are making a difference.

Some care providers may be collecting their own data already, however PROSPER has developed its own Monthly Mapping Tool, which produces dashboards, as shown below. All providers engaging with PROSPER are able to use this mapping tool. The dashboards are deliberately formatted to be easy for anyone to understand.

The dashboards can be used to decide which areas require attention, and help you create appropriate SMART aims. Then as your PDSA  cycles progress your updated dashboards will clearly show whether they are having a positive effect, whilst also allowing you to watch whether a negative effect is occurring in a different area.

If we look at the dashboard above from the fictitious 'Cosy Care Home'; In May 2016 this home felt its level of falls was too high, so they set a SMART aim of reducing falls by 50% by end of November 2016. The dashboard demonstrates that the PDSA cycles Cosy Care Home implemented were successful in achieving the SMART aim, and furthermore, apart from a 'spike' in January 2017, the number of falls each months has continued to reduce.

However the dashboard above also shows that whilst the falls have been reducing, there has been an upward trend of newly acquired pressure ulcers. This may or may not be related to the interventions to reduce falls, Cosy Care Home would need to decide this. But whether this was felt to be the case or not, the home would need to consider setting a SMART aim around pressure ulcers in an attempt to turn the trend from upwards to downwards.

Updated dashboards are sent out to all homes who submit data. If you are not already doing so, and would like more information or support with inputting monthly data please email prosper@essex.gov.uk