Table 13: Guidelines for using the Plan Do Study Act (PDSA) cycle Process Questions Generate ideas Gain What to do before consensus the next step Plan How can we May include Agree on a Brainstorm possible get to where ideas on: design and improvements. Identify an we want to implementation opportunity and how to solve Analyse strengths and be? plan for a trial plan for change. the problem; weaknesses. improvement What do we how to Establish criteria for do first? Agree on implement selection. criteria for the solutions; and What’s Establish timelines evaluating the best way to how to monitor and a plan for trial do it? & evaluate the monitoring and trial evaluating the trial. improvement Do Document problems and unexpected Implement the observations. change on a small scale. Study Have we Agree on Evaluate improvement implemented effectiveness trial using established Use data to the trial of trial. criteria. analyse the improvement results of the Compare results with correctly? change and desired state. determine Have we Check for new whether it made followed the problems. a difference. monitoring Decide to implement plan? change system-wide Are we or return to root cause improving? analysis to search for What are we other sources of learning? variation. Act Should we Develop ideas for Agree to a new Prepare to report implement planning plan for results of the project. If the change system-wide change. system-wide was successful, Communicate results change? change. implement the (Implement throughout the plan and Does action based on Agree to return organisation. continuously management what you learned to root cause Continue to monitor. monitor results. support the in the study step. analysis and change? If the change did start the If the change not work, go process again. work, start If not, should didn’t through the the process we continue process again again. to search for with a different other root plan, using what causes? you learned in the study step.) Source: Adapted from VAADA (2012)
Table 13: Guidelines for using the Plan Do Study Act (PDSA) cycle Process Questions Generate ideas Gain consensus What to do before the next step Plan Identify an opportunity and plan for change. How can we get to where we want to be? What do we do first? What’s the best way to do it? May include ideas on: how to solve the problem; how to implement solutions; and how to monitor & evaluate the trial improvement Agree on a design and implementation plan for a trial improvement Agree on criteria for evaluating the trial Brainstorm possible improvements. Analyse strengths and weaknesses. Establish criteria for selection. Establish timelines and a plan for monitoring and evaluating the trial. Do Implement the change on a small scale. Document problems and unexpected observations. Study Use data to analyse the results of the change and determine whether it made a difference. Have we implemented the trial improvement correctly? Have we followed the monitoring plan? Are we improving? What are we learning? Agree on effectiveness of trial. Evaluate improvement trial using established criteria. Compare results with desired state. Check for new problems. Decide to implement change system-wide or return to root cause analysis to search for other sources of variation. Act If the change was successful, implement the plan and continuously monitor results. If the change didn’t work, start the process again. Should we implement system-wide change? Does management support the change? If not, should we continue to search for other root causes? Develop ideas for planning change. (Implement action based on what you learned in the study step. If the change did not work, go through the process again with a different plan, using what you learned in the study step.) Agree to a new plan for system-wide change. Agree to return to root cause analysis and start the process again. Prepare to report results of the project. Communicate results throughout the organisation. Continue to monitor. Source: Adapted from VAADA (2012)
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