New and improved GIRFT metrics for vascular surgery have gone live on the Model Health System platform, allowing vascular units to identify where they are performing well and areas where they can target quality improvement.
More than 100 metrics covering the entire vascular surgical practice in England are included in the new compartment for procedures such as aortic dissection, abdominal aortic aneurysm (AAA) repair and lower limb amputations, as well as contextual information including admission numbers under a vascular surgeon. Important data for vein interventions and outpatient procedures are included for the first time.
The updated compartment is much more comprehensive than the previous version and closely aligns to the metrics in the National Consultant Information Programme (NCIP) portal – accessible to all consultant vascular surgeons and also found on MHS. This means that many users can now view comparable data at a personal, site, trust, and system level, all in one place.
To access the MHS vascular compartment, log in to https://model.nhs.uk/ and navigate to ‘acute hospital services’ > vascular surgery.
Around 450 consultant vascular surgeons now have access to NCIP, once registered. Those already registered can access the portal here: NCIP information. Or to register, email england.ncip@nhs.net.
The new data sets will be utilised to support a new round of GIRFT visits to all vascular units in England.
The NCIP portal is a free data platform showing consultant surgeons their own data, enabling them to review their practice to help improve clinical quality and patient safety and to support their appraisal, revalidation and career development. Consultants are shown data covering their entire NHS practice, wherever it is performed, with high-quality, specialty-specific dashboards at patient level.
A nationwide rollout of the NCIP to all consultant vascular surgeons in England took place in January 2024 and there are now around 150 regular users of the 23 vascular dashboards live in the tool. Metrics chosen by NCIP’s clinical leads and the Vascular Society of Great Britain and Ireland reflect practice for vascular procedures such as varicose vein surgery and abdominal aortic aneurysm (AAA).
Clinical leads, consultants and data experts have worked together to create dashboards that are accurate and meaningful for the vascular specialty, and the data is updated every three months. NCIP data is accessible via the Model Health System, allowing users to move seamlessly between the portal and MHS.
Not yet logged in? Find how NCIP can work for vascular surgeons in our webinar recording.
