Experience Discovery Conversations
A care experience discovery conversation is a structured conversation that supports people to talk about their personal experiences of care or support.
It helps them to reflect on key moments within that journey and offer insights into how they experienced specific aspects of care or support.
The purpose of these conversations is to gain deeper understanding of health and social care experiences from the perspective of the person receiving them. These conversations promote deep listening by care teams, creating space for individuals to reflect on and share meaningful moments from their care or support journey.
Insights gathered through these conversations help identify opportunities for improvement, with the aim of making the care or support experience better for others.
Why use Experience Discovery Conversations?
- To consult a small group or individual.
- To understand experiences.
- To identify solutions.
- To generate new ideas.
- To hear from underrepresented groups.
What is required?
- Duration: There is no set duration for experience discovery conversations.
- Number of participants: This should reflect the scope and aims of the project. Smaller numbers may be appropriate for deep qualitative insight; larger number may support broader pattern recognition
- Roles required: One person to facilitate the conversation.
A group of people interested in person-centred care improvement from a team or service. - Equipment:
A conversation guiding plan/framework;
Recording method: notebook and pen, audio recording device (if appropriate within organisation guidelines);
Consent form (if personal details are being recorded).
How to do it
Step by step process
1. Define the care or support journey by identifying the specific care or support pathway to be explored. Focus on the journey from the person’s perspective, including key touchpoints, moments where they interact with services, people, or environments.
2. Recruit participants by identifying a diverse group of people who have relevant experience. Provide information for the person giving feedback about what will happen with it and how their personal details will be handled (if personal details are recorded).
3. Create a discovery conversation plan/framework - Use a small number of open-ended questions to guide the conversation. Questions should encourage the person to reflect on their experiences across the defined journey, rather than respond to service-led prompts.
4. Hold the conversation with the individual or small group. Experience Discovery Conversations are usually held in-person, but can be adapted to be held on the phone or video call if the participants prefer.
5. Dig deeper into experiences - Let the person lead the conversation, prompting gently only when needed. Avoid assumptions and focus on listening deeply to uncover emotions, thoughts, and significant moments.
6. Record feedback in the person’s own words by capturing what is being said as accurately as possible. This helps preserve the emotional and contextual depth of the experience, which is essential for identifying meaningful improvement opportunities.
7. Reflect and act on feedback - Hold regular monthly multidisciplinary team meetings to review the experiences and the insights gained from them. Use the feedback to identify and test change ideas, embedding those that make a positive difference.
8. Consider communicating outcomes and next steps to participants to close the feedback loop.
Tips
- Avoid collecting identifiable personal details whenever possible to protect privacy and maintain confidentiality.
- Address ethical and legal considerations before starting, including securing informed consent and ensuring compliance with data protection regulations.
- Use convenience sampling to engage individuals who are accessible and willing to participate, recognising that this approach supports timely and practical insight gathering.
- Aim to conduct at least six conversations per month to build a consistent and evolving picture of service experiences and the quality of person-centred care being delivered over time.
Advantages
- Captures rich, personal stories and insights
- Promotes deep listening across care teams
- Drives continuous improvement
- Strengthens shared responsibility for care experiences
- Creates urgency for change through lived experience
Disadvantages
- Requires time to prepare a structured conversation framework
- Relies on team ownership of regular feedback gathering
- Needs development of conversation skills within the care team
- Depends on multidisciplinary involvement and buy-in
- Requires careful management to minimise selection bias
May be used alongside
More information
CEIM Experience Improvement Model for Health and Social Care