The Big Conversation about the Quality of Nursing ... - CLAHRC-NDL

Feedback
Around 50% of delegates filled in feedback forms and the majority of delegates agreed that
their understanding of the national and local leadership agenda has increased and were clearer
about their personal leadership and development needs. The delegates were also confident
and committed that they could use what they had learnt in their own Trust and valued the
chance for interaction and networking, engaging in genuine conversations from work settings
trying to tackle similar challenges. The lack of attendance from frontline staff was noted. Whilst
the examples of best practice and good clinical leadership provided inspiration for delegates,
some remarked that there were too many speakers just after lunch. It was suggested that
instead, the open conversations should be had during this time. Delegates also expressed a
wish for more time to have the open table conversations across the tables.
This was a new and unique event. Early informal conversations indicated that the majority of
delegates were genuinely enthusiastic and wanted to engage with the aims of the day, to be
able to voice opinions freely and exchange ideas. Delegates had the chance to network and
meet with like-minded others and this was later regarded as one of the key benefits of the day.
In addition to the guided discussions, these informal conversations over coffee and lunch
supported the exchange of ideas and shared experiences.
Action learning Points
The use of storytelling to illustrate points was a strong feature of the conversations, however,
there were indications that some delegates still did not feel that this was a safe forum. At
future events there could be an even stronger emphasis that delegates have permission to be
honest and express their opinions and tell stories without a concern about negative
consequences.
There were different styles of facilitating the table top discussions which demonstrated
different skill sets. The conversations appeared to be more productive when the facilitator was
able to spend most of the time listening and where where people in the groups had the space
to seek clarification from each other (which often corrected misunderstandings about each
other‟s services) and build up rapport and trust with new colleagues. This shows a need for
good listening skills and taking the pace of the event down in order to cultivate the
conversations.
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