GIRFT 12+ hour MH ED Breach Analysis Tool

Overview

NHS England’s Getting It Right First Time (GIRFT) Mental Health team, as part of the Mental Health Urgent & Emergency Care (MH UEC) Further Faster programme, is developing a Breach Analysis Tool to identify and analyse the key factors contributing to delays in Mental Health patient flow within Emergency Departments (EDs) at a national level.

The tool is designed to collect both qualitative and quantitative data to generate benchmarked, actionable insights. While most of the required data is currently held locally by providers, it is not routinely submitted to national datasets. This tool aims to address a significant national data gap and improve understanding of the drivers behind 12+ hour MH ED breaches. The survey will initially be conducted as a one-off data collection exercise with participating sites in the UEC Further Faster programme.

We are collecting a data snapshot for one 4-week period per hospital. For your hospital, please specify the start date and the end date for the 4-week period, and submit one response per patient who spent in excess of 12 hours in the Emergency Department where their primary reason for attendance was mental health related.

NHS England GIRFT Programme – Information Governance Notice

Why are we collecting this data?

The results from the questionnaire will support NHS England’s duty under the Health and Care Act 2022 to protect and promote the interests of people who use health services by ensuring the provision of care that is economic, efficient, and effective.

GIRFT is a national programme overseen by NHS England that aims to deliver quality improvement in patient outcomes through peer-to-peer discussions with clinicians and managers in trusts and with wider local partners. It combines comprehensive data analysis with clinical expertise to review current practices and identify opportunities for improvement.

Results from the survey responses will be used for the following purposes only:

• To analyse and identify the key factors impacting delays in MH ED patient flow where time in department exceeds 12 hours;
• To develop key metrics for routine collection and submission to national sources for ongoing monitoring and improvement;
• To support GIRFT peer-review or implementation meetings in hospitals and networks;
• To inform recommendations in the GIRFT MH UEC national report and other GIRFT published clinical content arising from the programme.

The type and level of data being collected

The questionnaire will not collect patient identifiable information. The questions cover both quantitative and qualitative themes. Most responses are either yes/no or numerical, both of which GIRFT may use for benchmarking analysis.

The questionnaire may request the name and contact details of the person who submitted responses to allow GIRFT to follow-up for clarification of answers, and which will not be shared.

Who will access the data and how will it be further shared?

The results from the questionnaire will be stored within the secure IT environment managed by NHS England. Data will be accessed by a small number of GIRFT staff that have NHS England permission to use the data for NHS England purposes.

The secure NHS England IT data environment is regularly backed up and data will be stored until no longer required for the purpose of the implementation of the GIRFT programme. NHS England may also share the data internally with NHS England regional and national teams to support our wider efficiency and productivity programmes and delivery of all statutory responsibilities of NHS England.

Data may also be shared with broader NHS organisations as part of their ongoing work coordinating patient pathways and improving outcomes and productivity.

Data Quality and Validation

Before you submit your Trust's response, it is worth noting that NHS England will not validate any answers. Please ensure that you check the quality of your data (in terms of both accuracy and completeness) before submission.