Background In 2018 senior leaders at LOROS decided to undertake a review of our organisational culture in order to gain a better understanding of what matters most to staff and volunteers. Clearly understanding how the culture ‘feels’ now, provides the benchmark that enables us to improve how it ‘feels’ in the future. This in turn, would improve not only the experience of our staff and volunteers but also underpins our ability to deliver excellent end of life care, for patients and families.

Aims

• To undertake an independent review of our organisational culture;

• To identify actions that need to be addressed in order for us to build upon what is already good about LOROS culture;

• To create a group of ‘Culture Champions’ offering approachable support for our staff and volunteers;

• To progress work that emerges from the review.

Methods We commissioned an independent organisation (POD) to undertake a review of our current culture. POD consulted with 123 staff and volunteers via pre-arranged workshops which generated 1,800, anonymised comments, about our current culture. POD then created a report, based only on areas that we needed to improve. This was openly circulated to all staff and volunteers.

Results The report highlighted themes that became the 12 work streams for the Culture Champions. Their clear intention remains to improve those key areas of our culture. A member of the Senior Management Committee was also assigned, to assist with each area.

Conclusion Some work streams are complete and some are still ongoing. We have made many changes, as a result of the review e.g. revisiting the organisational values and using the new version throughout our everyday work. All work will be completed by 2020, at which point a follow up cultural survey will be commissioned.