The Model for Improvement (MFI) is a simple yet powerful tool that you can use to implement practical changes. No project is too large or small for the MFI to be applicable. It is just as useful for helping improve your exercise routine as it would be for managing collaboration between multiple organizations. The purpose of this model isn’t to replace whatever model of change you use. Its role is to help accelerate the improvement you achieve. 

The MFI consists of testing changes through small steps and thorough analysis as opposed to immediate and impulsive changes. This requires asking yourself or your team three key questions and following this up with plan-do-study-act (PDSA) cycles to assess the results of the changes you make. 

Questions to ask:

  1. What are we trying to accomplish?

When planning to change and improve work processes, it is important to know exactly what it is that you want to achieve. We answer this first question in the model for improvement by stating our aim with as much detail as possible, and allocate whatever resources we will need to accomplish it. The aim must be specific, measurable, attainable, relevant and timely (SMART). 

  1. How will we know that a change is an improvement? 

We will need to know how we will measure our improvement in order to keep track of our progress.  A statistical process control including run charts is one useful way to measure improvement. A run chart is a graph that consists of data within a specific period of time. These charts help determine when changes are truly beneficial by showing the resulting patterns. 

  1. What changes can we make that will result in improvement?

Brainstorming, key driver diagrams, process maps, and FMEAs give us ideas for improvement that we can later test. All improvement requires change, but not all changes will result in improvement, which is why testing is essential. This is where PDSA comes into play. 

Plan-Do-Study-Act:

Step 1: plan 

Plan the test that will be carried out, what data you will collect, and how you will collect data. Predict what results will occur and why.  

Step 2: Do

Carry out the test and collect data. Document any unexpected results or problems that arise. 

Step 3: Study

Review the results of the test. Compare the results to your predictions. 

Step 4: Act:

Adopt the change if the results are what you expected. Modify or abandon the change if the results are not what you wanted. 

Not every change will lead to the results you expect. Therefore, it’s safer to test changes on a smaller scale before incorporating changes across the board. A PDSA, or plan-do-study-act cycle, is a systematic process for testing changes  PDSA cycles start with small tests. The more tests are done, the more we learn, and this knowledge is what we will use to create new PDSA cycles until we are able to implement a change on a larger scale.