Innovating in Health and Social Care, Rural Health in Wales. Applied Findings from the Practitioners’ Perspective

The impetus for this study arose from increased interest and drive for innovation in health and social care (H&SC) in Wales. As demands, needs, and expectations for H&SC rise exponentially and outstrip resources (Wanless, 2003), there has been increasing pressure for innovative practice. Additional stresses, such as access to H&SC (Wilson et al 2009) and an aging population (Stockdale & Philip, 2011), has resulted in rural communities experiencing this pressure more acutely than urban centres. Despite its obvious importance, research into innovative H&SC service delivery has lain somewhat moribund. This may in part be due to the complexity of innovating in health care as demonstrated by Plesk and Greenhalgh (2001). The literature highlights the shortfall between clinical research and implementation of innovation (Grol, 2001) but less so the gap between service delivery research and innovative practice (Shapiro et al, 2007). As such, this research on innovation amongst H&SC practitioners in rural contexts is timely and addresses some of the gaps both in academic and practitioner knowledge