PROMs rolled out across all hospitals
30 March 2009: Nuffield Health, the UK’s largest healthcare charity, has completed the roll out of Patient Reported Outcome Measures (PROMs) across the whole of its UK network of 30 hospitals, following a successful pilot at three hospitals in 2008. PROMs now form a key component of Nuffield Health’s customer-focused care pathways.
Initially, PROMs will be obtained for all patients undergoing hip and knee replacement, groin hernia repair and varicose vein procedures. Measuring the patient’s perspective on their health status before and after the procedure will allow Nuffield Health to assess the quality and effectiveness of the care it delivers.
By embedding the collection of PROMs into routine practice, the charity has ensured that the outcomes of these procedures can be captured without placing an undue administrative burden on the patient or clinical and medical staff. The systems adopted will allow the outcomes of additional procedures to be captured in the same way. Data collected will be used to inform clinical, local operational and strategic decision-making.
Dr Andrew Jones, Group Medical Director, said: “Nuffield Health is passionate about delivering the most effective treatment to achieve the greatest possible health gain for our patients. Measuring patient outcomes allows us to raise the bar on the standard of quality and care we actually deliver and is another means by which we, as a healthcare charity, are endeavouring to integrate our services around consumers’ needs from health clubs to hospitals in order to improve their quality of life.”
He continued: “The consultants, matrons and nurses have worked really hard to ensure PROMs have been implemented effectively and I’d like to thank them for their support in achieving this.”
Last month, Nuffield Health also announced it had earned the highest possible score in the NHS Litigation Authority’s Risk Management Standards for Independent Providers of NHS Care (2009-10) and was the first independent operator to achieve Level 2 accreditation.
Nuffield Health is committed to open and transparent reporting of its performance on its web site. Details of its quality standards here.
