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Purpose It has become accepted practice to include an evaluation alongside learning programmes that take place at work, as a means of judging their effectiveness. There is a tendency to focus such evaluations on the relevance of the intervention and the amount of learning achieved by the individual. The aim of this review is to examine existing evaluation frameworks that have been used to evaluate education interventions and, in particular, assess how these have been used and the outcomes of such activity. Design/methodology/approach A scoping review using Arskey and O’Malley’s five stage framework was undertaken to examine existing evaluation frameworks claiming to evaluate education interventions. Findings Forty five articles were included in the review. A majority of papers concentrate on learner satisfaction and/or learning achieved. Rarely is a structured framework mentioned, or detail of the approach to analysis cited. Typically, evaluations lacked baseline data, control groups, longitudinal observations and contextual awareness. Practical implications This review has implications for those involved in designing and evaluating work-related education programmes, as it identifies areas where evaluations need to be strengthened and recommends how existing frameworks can be combined to improve how evaluations are conducted. Originality/value This scoping review is novel in its assessment and critique of evaluation frameworks employed to evaluate work-related education programmes.

The aim of this study was to improve emergency theatre efficiency via the introduction of a theatre booking form and morning briefing meeting. Process mapping was used to engage staff and consider if the emergency theatre may benefit from the application of a structured process of communication. A theatre booking form and morning briefing meeting were implemented to promote change. Efficiency was measured by theatre utilisation and characterised into neutral time, efficient time and inefficient time. The results demonstrated a 12.9% increase in efficient time, 3.3% fall in inefficient time and 9.6% fall in neutral time post-implementation, during the high volume work period of 08:00 to 17:59 on weekdays. No improvement in efficiency was demonstrated outside these hours or on weekends during lower volume workloads. Utilisation of a theatre booking form and morning briefing meeting improved emergency theatre efficiency during high volume work periods by the application of a structured process of communication.

This study highlights that higher weekend mortality rates are a consequence of a lower proportion of elective admissions. Extending the working week to seven days might reduce weekend mortality without reducing the total number of deaths.