ISD Scotland Customer Update

January 2010

Cancer Information Programme - Update

The Cancer Information Programme (CIP) is contributing to the development of the eGenetics system and a link between ISD and GRO's Digital Imaging of the Genealogical Records of Scotland's people (DIGROS) system. On line availability of GRO family history through a DIGROS link will support more efficient development of individual pedigrees while eGenetics will assist more timely transmission of the final ISD genetics report in a more accessible format; all of which contribute to more timely patient care.

These and other benefits such as more joined up working and improved productivity, are expected to be delivered through 2010⁄11. These enhancements build on the Programme’s established role in supporting direct patient care through the information provided to genetics clinics leading to changes in family history, risk categorisation and care management¹. In today’s environment where there is a heightened focus on cost management, these services contribute to reducing NHS costs given the tendency for an increase in the proportion of patients allocated to the low risk category after consideration of the ISD genetics report. Costs are reduced as lower risk patients require fewer or no interventions such as screening and long-term follow-up².

¹ Brewster DH, Fordyce A, Black RJ & Scottish Clinical Geneticists. Impact of a cancer registry-based genealogy service to support clinical genetics services. Familial Cancer 2004;3:139–141.

² Reis MM, Young D, McLeish L, Goudie D, Cook A, Sullivan F, et al. Analysis of referrals to a multi-disciplinary breast cancer genetics clinic: practical and economic considerations. Familial Cancer 2006;5:297–303.

Evaluation of Community Health and Wellbeing Profiles 2008

In June 2008 the Scottish Public Health Observatory (ScotPHO) team at ISD Scotland published individual area health and wellbeing profiles for CHPs and a ‘Scotland Overview’ (http://www.scotpho.org.uk/profiles). This was followed, in December 2008, by the release of Excel data files for a range of geographies (Scotland, NHS boards, CHPs, intermediate geography zones and locally defined areas) for the same set of 61 health profile indicators, to allow local areas to undertake further analyses of the data, if they wished. In December 2009 the Excel data files were replaced with a new ‘easier to use’ interactive Excel based tool.

We now wish to undertake an evaluation of the 2008 profiles to find out how they have been used and any improvements that could be made to them in future. We would encourage anyone who has used any of the products from the 2008 profiles to please complete our online evaluation questionnaire.

To complete the questionnaire please click on the link below (the survey should take no longer than 15–20 minutes to complete):

http://www.surveymonkey.com/s.aspx?sm=iutV2o7rQ_2beD9y7GiS4D9w_3d_3d

This evaluation will inform the development of ‘community profiles 2010’. These will be published towards the end of 2010 and work on these will get underway very shortly. (Detailed 2008 profiles for the 10 CHPs⁄CHCPs in Greater Glasgow and Clyde were published, and evaluated, separately by the Glasgow Centre for Population Health).

The deadline for completing this survey is Wednesday, 3rd February. Please also pass on to any colleagues who you are aware have used the profiles. Thank you in advance for your help. If you need further information please contact: linsey.galbraith@nhs.net

This Month's publications

26 January 2010
Dental Statistics - Hospital Dental Services and Registrations

  • The percentage of the Scottish population registered with an NHS GDS dentist is 83.0% and 65.4% for children and adults respectively as at 30 September 2009. This is an increase from 81.7% for children and 63.0% for adults registered as at 30 June 2009.
  • There has been a 7% and 15.2% increase in the number of registrations for children and adults respectively from 30 September 2008 to 30 September 2009.
  • NHS Ayrshire & Arran, Dumfries & Galloway, Forth Valley, Greater Glasgow & Clyde, Highland, Lanarkshire, Lothian, Shetland and Tayside are currently meeting the HEAT target (80% of all 3–5 year old children to be registered with an NHS dentist by 2010⁄11).
  • The single most common reason for a planned (elective) hospital admission to a dental specialty is extraction of multiple teeth. This procedure accounts for approximately 42% of all elective admissions where a procedure took place.

General Practice - GP workforce and practice population statistics to 2009

  • There has been a steady increase in the headcount of GPs contracted to work in Scottish practices over the last 5 years, rising from 4,456 in 2004 to 4,941 in 2009 (an increase of 10.9%).
  • An increasing proportion of contracted GPs are female and in 2009, for the first time, females outnumbered males; with a 50.7% share of the total headcount, compared with 45.4% in 2004.
  • There has been a large rise in the headcount of salaried GPs, from 188 in 2004 to 480 in 2009 (an increase of 155.3%).
  • There has been a marked increase in the headcount of GP registrars (now referred to as specialist trainees) between 2004 and 2009, from 282 in 2004 to 472 in 2009 (an increase of 67%). This is related to an increase in the number of training places available and changes in the training arrangements from 2008. From 2008 GP trainees work in practices during two stages of their training whereas historically registrars would work in practice primarily at the end stages of their training.

ScotPHO diabetes website section update

  • Diabetes was the main reason for 6,687 hospital admissions in Scotland in 2008 and contributed to a total of 82,517 admissions during that year.
  • Diabetes was the underlying cause of 730 deaths in Scotland in 2008 and contributed to a total of 4,052 deaths.
  • It is well known that diabetes is under-recorded in hospital discharge records and in death certificates; these figures are therefore likely to considerably under-estimate the true number of admissions and deaths.

Scottish Perinatal and Infant Mortality and Morbidity Report 2008

  • Births in Scotland continue to rise, as they have every year since 2002.
  • The rate of twin births (16 per 1000 births) is the highest ever recorded.
  • The perinatal mortality rate (7.4 per 1000 births) is the lowest ever recorded.
  • The rate of stillbirths has remained constant at between 5 and 6 per 1000 births for the last two decades.

Also published are:

Scottish Antimicrobial Prescribing Group (SAPG) Report on Antimicrobial Resistance and Use in Humans

For more information on any of the publications above, click the title to navigate to the ISD website.

Accident and Emergency Data

ISD in collaboration with the Emergency Access Delivery Team, Scottish Government, have recently met with representatives from NHS Boards to discuss A&E information; including service configuration, local working practices, how data are recorded in the departments and future information requirements.

A&E data are submitted by NHS Boards on a monthly basis to ISD and held in a datamart. Initially this collection was established to monitor A&E waiting times against the four hour target. There is now a need to improve A&E information available nationally so ISD have embarked on a project to redevelop and enhance the data that can be stored in the datamart. It is hoped that the project will be completed by March⁄April 2010. The ISD team will be working with our A&E information contacts in the coming months to take these changes forward.

If you would like further information please email: nss.isdaewaiting@nhs.net

ISD Website Development

ISD is planning a major overhaul of its website in order to improve the experience for customers visiting the site. We are in the latter stages of procuring a new Content Management System and our web development manager vacancy is presently being recruited, to continue the management of this project. We will endeavour to take on board the wide variety of comments and suggestions received from customers via ISD Customer Surveys, and will be keen to seek further user feedback.

Anyone with an interest in website design, who wishes to volunteer their assistance, to get involved, is welcome to contact deborah.dunn@nhs.net and we'll get in touch with you when our new post holder is settled in. In the meantime, anyone who has difficulty in finding the information they need from our website is, as always, welcome to contact us - either through the named individual or group contact on the topic page, or via our customer support desk on 0131 275 7777.

Recent publications - 15 December 2009

Cancer Incidence (2007)
http://www.isdscotland.org/isd/6080.html

NHS Workforce Statistics
http://www.isdscotland.org/isd/6084.html

Body Mass Index (BMI) Statistics for Children in Primary 1 (school year 2008-09)
http://www.isdscotland.org/isd/6081.html

Acute Hospital Activity to 31 March 2009 (annual data) and to 30 June 2009 (quarterly data)
http://www.isdscotland.org/isd/6079.html

Drug Treatment Waiting Times Information Framework Report July-Sept 2009
http://www.isdscotland.org/isd/6082.html

Childhood Immunisation uptake rates – quarter ending 30 September 2009
http://www.isdscotland.org/isd/6083.html

Unintentional injuries
http://www.isdscotland.org/isd/6087.html

Prescribing Statistics - Medicines used in Mental Health
http://www.isdscotland.org/isd/6085.html

Smoking cessation statistics from the Scottish Public Health Observatory
http://www.isdscotland.org/isd/6091.html

National Primary Care Workforce Planning Survey 2009 - Results
http://www.isdscotland.org/isd/6092.html

Child & Adolescent Mental Health Services (CAMHS) in NHS Scotland: Characteristics of the Workforce Supply in 2009
http://www.isdscotland.org/isd/6088.html

Workforce Planning for Psychology Services in NHSScotland. Characteristics of the Workforce Supply in 2009
http://www.isdscotland.org/isd/6090.html

Findings from the 3rd Balance of Care⁄Continuing Care Census
http://www.isdscotland.org/isd/6093.html

Prescribing Statistics - Remuneration and Charges
http://www.isdscotland.org/isd/6086.html

For more information on any of the publications above, click the hyperlink under the relevant title to navigate to the ISD website.

ISD Newsletters

The following Newsletters have also been issued by ISD:

You can register to receive updates from other areas of ISD at the following link: http://www.isdscotland.org/isd/4335.html.

In this issue:

Contact

Bill Dunn

Information Services Division
NHS National Services Scotland
Gyle Square, 1 South Gyle Crescent
Edinburgh
EH12 9EB

(0131) 275 6234

w.dunn@nhs.net www.isdscotland.org