The North East Quality Observatory Service (NEQOS) provides quality measurement for NHS organisations. It is managed by Northumberland, Tyne and Wear NHS Foundation Trust (NTW) and South Tees Hospital NHS Foundation Trust. And has now been appointed by NICE, the National Institute of Health and Care Excellence, as the new provider for their National Collaborating Centre for Indicator Development (NCCID) programme.
NICE develops indicators for general practice and clinical commissioning groups (CCGs). They cover a wide range of topics, for example, the identification and management of atrial fibrillation, checking for signs of depression during post-natal check-ups, cervical cancer screening and the potential benefits of compiling an autism register.
NICE indicators help to determine whether NICE guidance is being delivered in practice, and whether this implementation is leading to better care. They are currently used in a number of national indicator sets including NHS England’s CCG measurement frameworks and the Quality and Outcomes Framework (QOF) for general practice.
Paula Whitty, Director of NEQOS and Joint Director of Research, Innovation and Clinical Effectiveness at NTW said: “We are delighted to have the opportunity to support NICE with the development of indicators that measure evidence-based practice. We are confident this will impact on the quality of patient care leading to better outcomes for patients and the public.”
Professor Gillian Leng, Deputy Director of NICE and Director for Health and Social Care said: “NICE indicators help to demonstrate how our guidance is working to enhance the quality of care in the NHS. The National Collaborating Centre plays a key role in developing the indicators. I am glad to have The North East Quality Observatory Service on-board.”
For the next three years NEQOS will support NICE in developing indicators to support quality improvement across health and social care.
More information is available at https://www.nice.org.uk/standards-and-indicators and www.neqos.nhs.uk.