The Smart Way:
Transforming healthcare through effective, clinically led digital systems.

SmartCo and Future Nurse Seeks Clinicians to Lead the Way Last month, SmartCo partnered with Future Nurse because we believe it takes a diverse group of experts to drive digital transformation in healthcare. We share the same vision and values, aiming to improve patient care with advanced technologies. Now, we’re looking to expand our team with dedicated clinicians from all professions who are passionate about making a difference. Why Join SmartCo and Future Nurse? 1. Lead Digital Transformation We believe clinicians are the key to healthcare transformation. Your expertise is crucial for integrating digital solutions like Electronic Patient Record (EPR) systems into daily practice. With your help, we can make sure these technologies meet the real needs of patients and healthcare providers. 2. Teamwork Teamwork is at the core of what we do. You’ll be part of a collaborative environment where your ideas matter. Together, we’ll create a healthcare system that uses technology to improve patient care and make operations more efficient. 3. Professional Growth We are committed to your continuous learning and development. We offer extensive training to keep you at the forefront of healthcare and technology. Your growth is important to us. 4. Make an Impact The work you do with us will directly impact healthcare organisations and patient outcomes. By helping implement and optimise digital solutions, you’ll improve diagnoses, treatments, and overall patient care. The Importance of Clinicians We know how valuable clinicians are. Your insights and experience are essential for successful digital transformation. By joining us, you’ll help shape the future of healthcare, ensuring technology enhances patient care. Opportunities for All Clinicians We’re looking for clinicians from all fields to join our team. Whether you’re a nurse, doctor, therapist or healthcare technician, your expertise is vital to our mission. We aim to drive innovation and provide top-tier consultancy services for the future of healthcare. Join Us The future of healthcare is bright, powered by dedicated clinicians and innovative technology. At SmartCo and Future Nurse, we’re proud to lead this transformation. Join us on this exciting journey and be part of a team making a real impact on healthcare. Together we can make a difference. About SmartCo Consulting At SmartCo Consulting, we are committed to delivering exceptional digital solutions. We’re a trusted partner with an established record of working in and alongside healthcare organisations. We have tried-and-tested methods for people-centred healthcare transformation, clinical engagement and benefits realisation. If you’re passionate about healthcare and excited about technology, we’d love for you to join our team. Contact us today.

We are thrilled to announce Henry Darch has joined SmartCo as a Client Support Consultant. Wishing you a warm welcome from the entire SmartCo team. We sat down with Henry to ask him a few questions about his career path, his new role at SmartCo and what he’s most looking forward to about joining. Hi Henry. What has been your career leading up to SmartCo? I have spent the last 5 years in healthcare working in both project management as well as client engagement. Digital healthcare then came to the forefront of my passions after years of estates work within the NHS. Now speaking with leaders within the NHS I want to make a difference and make sure the infrastructure for our healthcare system is up to date and successful. What is your new role and what will you be focusing on? I am joining as a Client Support Consultant. I’ll be engaging with clients to make sure their digital transformation projects are on track across the full project life cycle. I’ll be client facing from proposal to go live to allow for continued communication throughout a project, gaining the most success for our customers. What are you looking forward to most about joining? I’m looking forward to speaking with new and existing clients and collaborating together on their digital transformation projects. I’m also excited to learn from the digital leaders at SmartCo and hear about their experiences. What attracted you to SmartCo? SmartCo is highly regarded in the digital health market as a real leader. The experience of working alongside known names and leaders at SmartCo is what attracted me the most. It means that the clients are getting the best shared knowledge in the market and it also means I will gain great experience from the best. What do you enjoy doing in your spare time? If I’m not out running around with my daughter, you will find me on a golf course or watching Bath Rugby.

Electronic Patient Records: A guide to making the most of supplier/NHS relationships We’re pleased to share the below guide to making the most of supplier/NHS relationships, delivered on behalf of the NHS England Frontline Digitisation Programme. EPR Guide – Supplier NHS Relationships – May 2024 This guide was authored by SmartCo’s Victoria Betton, working with NHS England, techUK and Humber and North Yorkshire Integrated Care Board. Its aim is to improve the way suppliers and trusts work together to deliver successful digital transformation, from vision and business case, through to procurement, contract management, implementation, optimisation, and contract end. If you would like to speak to the SmartCo team about your digital transformation, then please contact us here.

In my last blog, I shared my heuristics for big projects. One of these is the need to take an external view on projects to mitigate against optimism bias and groupthink, and to improve the chance of success. Good project assurance is an important way of providing this external view and needs to be a key governance consideration for project sponsors and boards. Definitions below courtesy of Wikipedia: Optimism bias: A cognitive bias that causes someone to believe that they themselves are less likely to experience a negative event. Groupthink: A psychological phenomenon that occurs within a group of people in which the desire for harmony or conformity in the group results in an irrational or dysfunctional decision-making outcome. One of the great things about leading major projects in Government is you get to experience project assurance from both “sides”. I provide assurance in my role as a high-risk review team leader for the Infrastructure and Projects Authority (IPA), and I’ve received assurance on the major projects I’ve directed. The IPA assures, supports and reports on Government major projects – those which require spending over and above departmental limits (often £50m), require primary legislation, or are innovative or contentious. This represents a portfolio of around 200 projects with a total cost to the taxpayer approaching £500bn. The IPA assurance review kit can be found here. The purpose of any project assurance should be to help the sponsor to improve its chance of success. Assurance reviews should be taken at key stages in the project lifecycle, such as business justification, delivery strategy, investment decision, readiness for service and benefit realisation. Assurance teams should be independent and have relevant project and industry expertise. They should work on a peer-to-peer basis, against an agreed terms of reference and code of conduct. Key aspects of conduct are teamwork, objectivity, diversity, openness, honesty, constructive challenge and confidentiality. Good assurance reviews are well planned and consider a range of evidence and stakeholder views on a “non-attributable” basis. The assurance team should make evidence-based findings and practical recommendations that will aid delivery, highlighting good practice as well as areas for improvement. They should regularly update the sponsor during the review to ensure there are “no surprises”. The output of the assurance review should be a report that is agreed with the sponsor. This report should provide an assessment of delivery confidence, findings, recommendations, blockers, and areas of good practice. IPA assurance reviews utilise a RAG delivery confidence assessment. There is a nuance to providing such an assessment. Some of the key questions I consider are: do the project vision and objectives remain valid; are stakeholders bought into these; is the delivery strategy right; is there good governance; are the risks understood; and is there the right capability in the project team Green: Successful delivery of the programme/project to time, cost and quality appears highly likely and there are no major outstanding issues that at this stage appear to threaten delivery. Amber: Successful delivery of the programme/project to time, cost and quality appears feasible but significant issues already exist requiring management attention. These appear resolvable at this stage and, if addressed promptly, should not present a cost/schedule overrun. Red: Successful delivery of the programme/project to time, cost and quality appears to be unachievable. There are major issues which, at this stage, do not appear to be manageable or resolvable. The programme/project may need re-baselining and/or its overall viability re-assessed. Following the assurance review, the onus is on the project sponsor and board to ensure the recommendations are implemented. Actions should be planned, with progress against these tracked and reported to the board. Further assurance of action plans should be considered, especially in the case of a red delivery confidence assessment. About Paul Paul works in partnership with healthcare organisations to deliver people-centred transformation that improves services for patients and staff. He has 25 years’ transformation experience, with 15 years leading national programmes and services in the NHS. He is a graduate of the Major Projects Leadership Academy, a high-risk review team leader for the Infrastructure and Projects Authority and a mental health first aider. About SmartCo Consulting SmartCo is a consultancy business specialising in the delivery of digital transformation projects for large private and public sector organisations. We offer advisory, project delivery and optimisation services across a range of industries including Healthcare, Consumer & Retail, Media & Telco and Financial Services. If you would like to speak to the SmartCo team about your project assurance needs, then please contact us here.