Initial findings from the first independent economic evaluation of CLEAR show the clinically-led national transformation programme is cost-effective, encourages retention and is more likely to deliver results than other complex change projects.

The National Clinically-Led workforcE and Activity Redesign Programme places clinicians at the heart of healthcare innovation and decision making.

Key findings from the evaluation of CLEAR projects in 2019 and 2020 showed:

  • CLEAR recommendations are more likely to be implemented compared to other complex healthcare interventions because of significant levels of clinical engagement – and have a potential return on investment of up to £14 over 5 years for every £1 invested
  • CLEAR provides more cost-effective delivery of complex change programmes than the alternatives – resulting in a cost saving of £1.90 for every £1 spent
  • CLEAR appears to have a positive impact on staff retention and wellbeing – the cost of a CLEAR project is covered if one medical consultant remains in post for a year or there’s 1% improvement in the annual staff retention rate within a site.
  • CLEAR allows participants to develop valuable new skills in a more productive way – 100% of survey respondents said the CLEAR programme was a more efficient way of learning and practising skills than alternative training.

Kirstie Baxter, head of workforce transformation at Health Education England (HEE) said;

“CLEAR equips clinical colleagues with the skills to ‘redesign from the front’, developing practical and lasting solutions for new models of care and ways of working. This early evaluation demonstrates the value of CLEAR and how it is supporting clinical colleagues to transform services.”

CLEAR is a work-based learning programme that is sponsored by Health Education England, hosted by East Lancashire NHS Trust and delivered by 33n, a team of NHS clinicians, data engineers and scientists who are united in their passion to improve services, address workforce challenges and enhance patient care. The team train clinicians to use big data analysis to deliver new models of care and workforce redesign.

Dr John Jeans, national lead for the CLEAR programme, said;

“We are committed to the ongoing evaluation of our projects and ensuring we can demonstrate the value they bring to the NHS – we are delighted that these early finding suggest they are making a real difference to solving some of the huge challenges the NHS is facing.”

The evaluation was conducted by health economists from UCL’s Rapid Research, Evaluation and Appraisal Lab (RREAL) and Economics By Design. It used projects as case studies to assess potential return on investment (ROI), how they were delivered and inform the CLEAR programme’s future direction.

View the evaluation “The value of CLEAR – A formative health economic evaluation”