 New website supports improvements to data quality
With the amount of data NHS Wales collects ensuring the data is of high quality is more important than ever.
Now a national Information Quality Initiative is under way to improve the development and use of data standards in operational systems and national submissions.
To support the initiative a new website has been launched by the NHS Wales Informatics Service and Welsh Government, which sets out its purpose, why it's needed and the work programme to deliver real change.
"Information is the lifeblood of the healthcare sector, As well as the obvious primary use of information in treating patients, there are a range of secondary uses, including public health surveillance, performance monitoring, service planning/improvement and financial costing," says David Hawes, Information Standards Manager, for the Informatics Service.
"This initiative places emphasis on grassroots improvements to data collected for use in strategic national systems. All too often, improvements to data quality are attempted at the data warehousing or reporting stages. In order to make real inroads, there must be a focus on improvements at the point of data entry. This can only be achieved through collaborative working both within and between organisations."
| 
