Data standardisation

Good quality data is integral to delivering good quality health and care. The availability and sharing of citizen and patient-level data forms the cornerstone for improving outcomes for individuals and enhancing the quality of services delivered across health and social care.

A data standard is a way of ensuring data is organised in a uniform way according to the requirements of all data users.

The data standards work currently being done is part of the development of a National Community/Mental Health Service Care Record.

What does this involve?

The National Digital and Data Design for Community and Mental Health Services in Wales has been developed through a series of practitioner-led Task and Finish groups.

This work is led by clinicians who help us to ensure any information, operational or clinical, is captured in a consistent manner.

The output of this work includes data items that underpin the Community/Mental Health Services clinical process and is aligned to National Standards, including the National Mental Health Care Record.

This work makes sure any data or information collected in a system such as CareDirector, or its eventual replacement, is the same regardless of Health Board or Local Authority, helping to report and provide analysis to make improvements.

Why is this work important?

The design work is service-driven and, therefore has greater relevance for practitioners who have been involved in the development from the start.

This work helps to define care processes for all health providers regardless of how they are set up and can help Improve aspects of care such as reducing the need for patients to re-tell their story multiple times, waiting times as well as lessen administrative burden for staff. This work helps to define care processes for all health providers regardless of how they are set up and can help improve aspects of care such as reducing the need for patients to re-tell their story multiple times, waiting times as well as lessen administrative burden for staff, helping improve day-to-day management of caseloads and ensure that care is equitable.

By helping us to build a clear process, Care Providers across multiple organisations are able to pinpoint data capture points. This means that data can be entered once and then analysed multiple times, ensuring that the right information is available at the right time. This allows teams to review processes and develop more outcome-focused practices.

What are we doing next?

The National Mental Health Care record impact analysis will undergo a final review with the DHCW Data Standards team before obtaining assurance from the Welsh Information Standards Board (WISB).

Once assured, a Data Set Change Notice (DSCN) will be issued to mandate the National Standards in Wales.

An implementation date for this data collection will be discussed separately with Health Boards to determine when they will be able to begin capturing the National standards for the services within their electronic patient systems.

A Data Standards Change Notice is a mandate to NHS and partner organisations and system suppliers to ensure that they are able to support a new or changed data standard.