Knowledge management
What is knowledge management?
Knowledge management (or KM) enables access to knowledge, information, experience and best practice in health and social care.
"You can't manage knowledge. What you can do is to manage the environment in which knowledge can be created, discovered, captured, shared, distilled, validated, transferred, adopted, adapted and applied. In order to create an environment within which knowledge rapidly flourishes we need:
- the right conditions: a common reliable infrastructure and an organisation willing be entrepreneurial;
- the right means: a common model, tools and processes;
- the right actions: where people instinctively seek, share and use knowledge; and
- the right leadership: where learning and sharing is expected and role-modelled." - Chris Collison, KM expert
Clinicians and managers alike rely heavily on knowledge management expertise for support in training, education, development and practice. Clinical staff in particular face a constant challenge in keeping up to date with the latest research and guidelines in their particular fields. Knowledge management specialists also provide training in search and critical appraisal skills.
Why is knowledge management important in the NHS?
Improved performance: Good knowledge management practitioners allow more rapid systems development; help to reduce duplication of effort and reinventing solutions; reduce repetition of mistakes; help to avoid common errors; and resolve problems faster.
Improved culture: Good knowledge management facilitates leaders aligning knowledge management with organisational goals; it enables connections between the right people; knowledge management also promotes networking with like-minded individuals across the DH Informatics Directorate and the wider NHS.
Increased learning: Using the experience of others to develop good practice and things to avoid is the result of knowledge management. Practitioners also facilitate access to the people with the skills, experience and know-how that is lacking.
Increased innovation: Practitioners operating good knowledge management enable disparate ideas and approaches to come together and to be organised coherently for the benefit of the organisation.
"Knowledge is the enemy of disease." Sir Muir Gray, Director NHS National Knowledge Service and NHS Chief Knowledge Officer (quoted on http://www.london.nhs.uk/lpfit/knowledge-management)
Resources
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The book "Learning to Fly - Practical Knowledge management from leading and learning organizations" (2006, 2nd ed) co-authored by Chris Collison and Geoff Purcell is a good place to start learning about knowledge management.
It looks at what is knowledge management, what tools and techniques can be used to manage knowledge and why this is important. It is based on the authors' experience within BP but also includes stories and examples from a diverse set of organisations, including the United Nations, De Beers, BBC, TearFund, Centrica, the US Army and a primary school in Australia.