Millions of patients benefitting from improved care as new NHS IT software rolled out

Innovative IT software designed to tackle waiting lists and reduce discharge delays has been rolled out across more than two thirds of the NHS.

The NHS Federated Data Platform securely brings together data currently held in separate systems, making it easier for staff to access key information so they can provide quicker and more joined-up care for millions of patients across the country.

A year since its introduction, 87 NHS acute hospital trusts and 28 integrated care boards in England have signed up so far.

The platform brings together real-time data, such as the number of beds in hospital, the size of elective waiting lists, staff rosters, the availability of medical supplies and social care places so staff can then plan their resources better.

New data published today show hospital trusts using the NHS Federated Data Platform have each treated on average 114 more inpatients in theatres every month since introducing the tool.

The platform has come as part of the NHS’ plan to reform patient care and provide maximum value for taxpayers, with figures showing new initiatives to boost productivity have helped the NHS save £2 billion in the first 5 months of this financial year to be reinvested into patient care.

Ming Tang, Chief Data and Analytics Officer at NHS England, said: “The NHS Federated Data Platform boosts efficiency and speeds up care and I’m delighted that over 100 NHS organisations have already signed up to use the service in its first year.

“Its many benefits include the ability to identify those on waiting lists for longest, highlighting issues that could lead to on the day cancellations of procedures, showing when operating theatres are lying empty and speeding up discharges so patients get home faster.

“Hospital trusts using the tool are seeing dozens more patients each month and we’re working with NHS organisations to bring these benefits to as many more patients as possible”.

South Tyneside and Sunderland NHS Foundation Trust, one of the pilot sites, reported a 37% reduction in the number of days patients remained in hospital after they were ready to go home. Long stay patients spent an average of 5 days less in hospital after they were ready to leave, freeing up beds for other patients.

Anna Hargrave, Divisional Director of Community Services at South Tyneside and Sunderland NHS Foundation Trust, said: “Over the past 18 months, this tool has enabled us to make better use of data to drive operational changes that have led to improvements in performance.

“This is hugely positive for our staff, who are enjoying better ways of working, and for our patients, who are able to safely leave hospital faster than they were a year and a half ago”.

Each hospital trust and local health system has their own version of the platform, which comes with a number of ready to use products. Additional products now being tested include technology that identifies where patients could be treated faster at a nearby hospital and a new tool that helps to ensure suspected cancer patients are seen, diagnosed and treated sooner.

York and Scarborough Teaching Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust is the latest trust to join the NHS Federated Data Platform and is focused on improving their discharge process.

Abdi Abolfazl, Deputy Chief Operating Officer at York and Scarborough Teaching Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust, said: “The platform enables the trust to communicate actions directly to our local authorities and other community partners to support the discharge of patients, giving us the perfect opportunity to work collaboratively to get patients home sooner”.

The NHS Federated Data Platform will also help trusts, regions and local care systems to apply the lessons learned from vaccination campaigns to deliver faster, more informed and joined-up patient care and will also help the NHS tackle long-term challenges like preventing ill-health and health inequalities.

In addition, the platform supports the government’s plans to roll out new technology across the NHS to increase productivity, providing value for money for taxpayers.

More details are available on the NHS England website.