Grant: Project Grant

In the long-term care (LTC) sector, we face longstanding challenges like poor resident care and a workforce crisis, worsened by COVID-19. Transforming LTC homes into places that prioritize resident well-being and staff satisfaction is more urgent than ever. However, spreading proven solutions across the entire system is tough; often, they are confined to small projects or individual homes, wasting resources. Informal communication networks among LTC home leaders, connecting homes and organizations, could be the key to spreading these solutions faster. Yet, we do not fully understand how these networks help innovation spread. Our project aims to address this gap. Using theories on how innovations spread through social networks, we want to see how LTC home leaders share ideas and how we can make those networks useful for future innovation diffusion. We have three main goals. First, we will examine how knowledge-sharing networks among LTC home leaders affect the spread of a specific innovation in Alberta LTC sector-A Breathing Toolkit designed for staff for stress management. Second, we aim to understand the bigger picture of existing knowledge-sharing networks among LTC home leaders regarding spread of any innovation. Third, we will find out what helps or stops people from knowledge sharing and communicating in these networks and how we can strengthen the existing networks for future innovation diffusion efforts and eventually achieve system-level improvement. We will use surveys, interviews, and group discussions to dig into these questions. Our team includes experts in LTC research, network analysis, and translating research into action. We will work closely with LTC leaders, policymakers, and other community partners to make sure our findings help improve LTC across Alberta and beyond. We hope our work will lead to clearer insights into how to use networks to spread good ideas and practices in LTC homes and improve well-being of people living and working there.