Simulating the impact of change: implementing best practice in stroke care

Area of Science:

• Health Services Research
• Decision Science
• Health Policy

Background:

• Implementing best practices in stroke care is crucial for improving patient outcomes.
• Healthcare decision-makers require robust methods to assess the impact of new strategies.
• The National Stroke Strategy provides a framework for enhancing stroke care delivery.

Purpose of the Study:

• To describe the experience of healthcare decision-makers using simulation for stroke care strategy adoption.
• To outline the development of a simulation model for evaluating best practice implementation.
• To demonstrate how simulation supports evidence-based decision-making in healthcare commissioning.

Main Methods:

• Development of a simulation model tailored to stroke care pathways.
• Stakeholder engagement in defining and testing key decision-making questions.
• Utilizing simulation to explore the impact of adopting National Stroke Strategy best practices.

Main Results:

• Simulation provided insights into the potential effects of adopting new stroke care practices.
• Stakeholder involvement ensured the model addressed critical questions for commissioning strategy.
• The process facilitated a better understanding of the implications of implementing best practices.

Conclusions:

• Simulation modeling is a valuable tool for healthcare decision-makers evaluating complex strategies.
• Engaging stakeholders in model development enhances the relevance and utility of simulation.
• Simulation supports evidence-based decision-making for optimizing stroke care commissioning.