Harnessing the power of NHS prescriptions data for care home patients: the potential and the possibilities

The NHS Business Services Authority (NHSBSA) is an arm’s length body of the Department of Health & Social Care. We help the NHS to run efficiently by delivering services, products and platforms on a national scale to a range of customers. 

Because of the national and large-scale nature of our services, we produce and collate vast amounts of data. We use this data to provide insight across the health and care system that supports decision making, drives innovation and delivers improvements in healthcare for the UK population.

The NHSBSA Data Science team have undertaken an exciting project which enables them to identify care home patients in NHS prescriptions data and estimate prescribing in primary care. This addresses a key gap in knowledge and could inform the use and management of medicines in care homes to improve health outcomes, the quality of care and ensure value.

In this presentation we will tell you about the work we have undertaken and our open approach. We will showcase our interactive insight report which allows users to explore patterns nationally and locally. And we’ll discuss the opportunities this project brings.