F8: How do they do that? Using Appreciative Enquiry to Develop Safety Culture


Wednesday 22 June 2022 | 15:00-16:00


Format: Workshop
Stream: Safety
Content filters: Features discussion of improvement methodology


Understanding and supporting effective safety culture in teams, organisations and systems is vital to enable improvements in safety, quality and experience of care.


The cultural and relational elements of planned improvements need to be considered to allow effective implementation. Understanding how culture shifts requires accounting for the relational elements when considering systems as ecosystems


We will present our learning from a considered analysis of several clinical services where there is a perceived high quality safety culture. We will share how a range of interventions from these services can be used to support other clinical services to develop supportive safety cultures


After this session, participants will be able to:



  • Understand the interdependence between safety culture and safety/quality improvement

  • Appreciate how the local relational aspects of effective teams can support shifts in safety culture

  • How to practically provide support to teams to generate and nurture effective safety culture


Tony Kelly, NHS England & Improvement; England


Nicola Mackintosh, Social Science Applied to Healthcare Improvement Research (SAPPHIRE) Group, University of Leicester; England


Matt Hill, NHS England and Improvement; England


Becky Wilson-Crellin, NHS England & Improvement; England