In the near future some patients of Blackburn with Darwen doctors will receive a letter asking them to confirm their current address and registration with their GP. This is a routine process known as list validation which is undertaken across the country by Primary Care Trusts.
List Validation/Data Quality is an exercise carried out by NHS Blackburn with Darwen to try and eliminate list inflation by ensuring accurate practice lists. List inflation is the difference between the number of patients living in Blackburn and Darwen Borough, and the number of patients registered on GP’s lists.
It is currently estimated that in some Blackburn wards practice sizes may be inflated by approximately 20%. This estimate is derived using the census data and council tax figures (from Blackburn with Darwen Borough Council) for the number of people living in Blackburn and Darwen in comparison to the number of patients registered on the Exeter System (which is a Patient Data database) used by GP practices and Lancashire and South Cumbria Agency ( LaSCA) who administer GP patient lists on behalf of NHS Blackburn with Darwen Teaching Care Trust Plus. (CTP)
Lancashire and South Cumbria Agency ( LaSCA) provide information and intelligence to support PCT commissioning for North West Trusts including administer GP patient lists on behalf of NHS Blackburn with Darwen Teaching Care Trust Plus. (CTP)
More information on LaSCA at: www.lasca.nhs.uk/
Purpose of this website
NHS Blackburn with Darwen want to publicise this information to voluntary and community groups, staff and the general public to ensure :
- Patients are not worried when they receive a letter telling them about list validation
- Community Groups understand about list validation and can support any members of their community who have queries or concerns
- Community groups raise awareness of the importance of responding to letters received regarding list validation
Key objectives of the list validation exercise
The key objectives of list cleaning in Blackburn with Darwen are to:
- Ensure more accurate practice lists thereby enhancing data quality
- Ensure important information such as patient screening (cervical screening, bowel screening), call/recall letters and results are received by the people they are intended for, thereby increasing patient safety
- Support savings being made by NHS Blackburn with Darwen and therefore allowing public funding and resources to be allocated more appropriately
Process of list validation
For all list validation exercises, each patient is sent a letter by LaSCA with a 21 day deadline (stage 1) asking the patient to confirm that they live at the address specified on the letter. If the patient fails to respond to this letter, a reminder is sent with a 14 day deadline (stage 2).
No response to both letters result in the patient being flagged on the database for removal from the practice list for not responding.
To ensure all practices are fully aware of potential deductions, they are informed of patients who have not responded at this stage. The practices are given 6 months (stage 3) to make contact with the patient so that the flag can be removed and the patient remains on the practice list. If no response to the flag is made by the practice within the specified 6 month period, the patient is deducted from the database and practice list (stage 4).
To meet the needs of Blackburn with Darwen’s diverse populations, translations in a number of languages are made available on the letter giving telephone and reference numbers for patients to call if they require the letter to be translated.
Current exercise
Community Groups should be aware that different cohorts of patients are written to as part of list validation exercises; therefore not all Blackburn with Darwen residents will receive this letter.
Letters to patients will be sent from September 2011
Acknowledgements
This briefing is based on material produced by Ealing Primary Care Trust as part of the work carried out in relation to list size validation.
If you have any queries or concerns regarding the current list validation exercise in NHS Blackburn with Darwen, please contact Sarah Danson (Lead for Primary Care Contracting on 01254 282047 )
