AUDIT AND INFORMATION

The Network Audit Strategy recognises the need to review all aspects of patient care in order to inform practice, service improvement, policy and investment. This requires input from many organisations involved in the delivery of care and in the monitoring of outcomes, including Acute Trusts, the West Midlands Cancer Intelligence Unit (WMCIU), the National Screening Programmes and the Healthcare Commission sponsored audits managed by the National Clinical Audit Support Programme (NCASP).

Local review of cancer services is undertaken by Network Site Specific Groups using Key Performance Indicators, local audit, national audit and review of data provided by the WMCIU. The Information and Audit Lead and Chemotherapy Audit Officer are together supporting the development and implementation of audit in Acute Trusts.

Local Initiatives

CAUDICO

• The Collecting And Using Data to Improve Cancer Outcomes project is a joint initiative between the Pan Birmingham Cancer Network and the West Midlands Cancer Intelligence Unit. The web based system not only enables trusts in the Pan Birmingham Cancer Network to record cancer waiting times but also provides search and alert tools which are used to proactively manage patient care and help ensure that patients are treated within the cancer plan target timescales.

Key Performance Indicators

• Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) have been developed to monitor improvements in cancer treatment and consistency across provider organisations, and as a method by which organisations provide reassurance and evidence that their cancer services are safe, equitable and deliver good outcomes for patients. Network Site Specific Groups have agreed KPIs with reference to the measures described within the NICE Improving Outcomes Guidance and the Healthcare Commission sponsored national cancer audits, where these exist, or else have identified their own priority measures.

Audit

• Network Site Specific Groups are encouraged to develop and perform audit via trust multidisciplinary teams. This includes the national audits for lung cancer, head and neck cancer, bowel cancer, oesophago-gastric cancer and mastectomy and breast reconstruction. The breast Network Site Specific Group is participating in the national BCCOM project. 

Drug Audit

• The Chemotherapy Audit Officer coordinates audit of the use of NICE and high cost drugs in accordance with the network formulary.

Confidentiality

• The importance of security and confidentiality and best practice in relation to this is described in the Network Information Sharing Protocol which is endorsed by Caldicott Guardians. (Updated version available soon.)

For more information on current Network audits contact the Information and Audit Lead.

National Initiatives

Cancer Waiting Times

National Clinical Audit Support Programme (NCASP)

• Clinical Audit has always been an integral part of healthcare delivery, as medical staff and clinicians continually review practice and delivery. The NCASP, commissioned by the Healthcare Commission, manages the national clinical audits for cancer, coronary heart disease, and diabetes, and is driven by the constant need to improve the efficiency and level of patient care. Cancer audit projects have been commissioned in the following areas; Head and Neck,  Lung, Colorectal, Mastectomy and Breast Reconstruction, Oesophago-gastric

Cancer Datasets

• The National Cancer Dataset is the nationally approved standard for the collection of cancer data. The dataset has been developed under the leadership of the former NHS Information Authority and with the involvement of Clinicians, Cancer Service Providers, NHS managers and Cancer Registries. The National Cancer Dataset provides a tool for cancer service providers to share data across healthcare boundaries, to enable comparison of cancer information, monitor outcomes and to improve patient care.

• Version 4.5 of the Core Cancer Dataset plus site-specific data items and data manuals are available from the Information Centre.

Radiotherapy Dataset Project

• The National Radiotherapy Advisory Group (NRAG) report recommends that collection of the radiotherapy dataset, developed by the Radiotherapy Episode Statistics (RES) project, be mandated. Data will provide valuable clinical and managerial information that will be available to support the planning, commissioning and delivery of clinically effective and equitable radiotherapy services. 

Informatics Forum

The Informatics Forum provides Managers and MDT Co-ordinators with the opportunity to address the challenges, share good practice and improve communication in relation to cancer data collection and audit initiatives within the Pan Birmingham Cancer Network. The group meets quarterly. 

Tools

Guidance on meeting the cancer waiting times targets is available:

• The How To Guide: Achieving Cancer Waiting Times

Guidance on performing clinical audit

• Guidance on performing clinical audit is available in the NICE publication ‘Principles for Best Practice in Clinical Audit’ published by Radcliffe Medical Press Lt. (ISBN 1-85775-976-1) This is available in PDF format at http://www.nice.org.uk/

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Audit and Information

Audit and Information Documents

Document Library Top

	Document	Created	Created By	Size (Bytes)
	Applying High Impact Changes to Cancer Care	01/03/2007 23:49:39	ginad	148867
	Cancer Waiting Targets - A Guide (version 5)	02/08/2007 15:36:51	alisonb	294656
	DSCN 22/2002 National Cancer Waiting Times Monitoring	01/03/2007 23:50:38	ginad	504963
	Information Sharing Protocol	11/10/2007 13:57:57	alisonb	234481
	NICE Referral Guidelines for Suspected Cancer	01/03/2007 23:49:23	ginad	822910