Qualitative evaluation of the Safe Medication Dashboard implementation
Research type
Research Study
Full title
Qualitative evaluation of the implementation of the Safe Medication Dashboard (SMASH) across Greater Manchester
IRAS ID
276959
Contact name
Niels Peek
Contact email
Sponsor organisation
University of Manchester
Duration of Study in the UK
1 years, 6 months, 29 days
Research summary
More than 2.7 million medications are prescribed in primary care in England every day. Adverse events arising as a result of prescribing errors, or failure to monitor important markers afterwards, are an importance source of patient morbidity. SMASH is an easy-to-view electronic dashboard that helps general practices identify patients at-risk of medication errors and take action before any potential harm can occur. SMASH was trialled across Salford with impressive results; in addition to substantially reducing the numbers of at-risk patients, the reduction was sustained after 12 months.
Due to this success, SMASH is being rolled out across Greater Manchester in 2020. However, this is far from straightforward as there are numerous technical, legal, and information governance challenges which need to be overcome. This qualitative ethnographic study aims to understand the challenges of implementation across different localities. This will be done through non-participant observation of the implementation of SMASH (of appropriate service delivery and implementation meetings, training and engagement events with staff), interviews and/or focus groups with staff responsible for the delivery of SMASH, and the collection of appropriate documents and policy (meeting minutes, usage information, policy).
The outputs developed help to inform knowledge on the spread and scale of innovative technologies in the NHS and inform best practice that other areas in the country can follow leading to improved outcomes for patients.
REC name
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REC reference
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