Finalist
Advanced Communication Training for Heart Failure Nurses
Summary of work
When NICE makes a recommendation, all stakeholders need to sit up and take notice. So, when NICE issued guidelines with a new recommendation concerning communication skills in heart failure (HF), that’s exactly what Novartis and Aurora did.
Based on insights from NICE’s evidence review and heart failure specialist nurses (HFSNs) and their patients, this new educational programme fulfilled clear unmet needs and has the potential to improve patient morbidity and mortality. Importantly, the content, format and delivery were all informed by insights and behavioural psychology expertise to create a programme that would give hope in heart failure.
We wanted to elicit a change in how HF conversations happen, with patients motivated to become partners in care, leading to better outcomes. We created three interactive advanced training modules with downloadable content for HFSNs.
Driven by a strategy of authenticity and co-creation, the learning modules were a huge hit with the target audience because they (a) met specific educational needs; (b) were engaging because they were true to life; (c) were accessible within the time constraints of busy NHS nurses.
Judges’ comments
This was clear on the challenge with a good strategy from Novartis and Aurora. It has positive outcomes for HCPs and the judges liked the lessons learnt. The patient perspective was brought in well through direct engagement.
