Support Hospital Episode Statistics as a reliable national resource for monitoring outcomes

BRIS-150 Response Historic

Support Hospital Episode Statistics as a reliable national resource for monitoring outcomes

Recommendation

The Hospital Episode Statistics database should be supported as a major national resource which can be used reliably, with care, to undertake the monitoring of a range of healthcare outcomes.

Published Evidence Summary

The following publicly available evidence relates to this recommendation:

- NHS England maintains the Hospital Episode Statistics (HES) database as the primary national resource for monitoring healthcare activity, including admissions, appointments, and outcomes (NHS England HES website, 2024, https://digital.nhs.uk/data-and-information/data-tools-and-services/data-services/hospital-episode-statistics). - The "Getting It Right First Time" (GIRFT) programme utilizes HES data to benchmark surgical outcomes and clinical performance across all NHS trusts in England (GIRFT website, 2024, https://www.gettingitrightfirsttime.co.uk/). - The Office for National Statistics (ONS) and NHS England use HES data to produce official reports on mortality and healthcare outcomes (ONS Healthcare outcomes report, 2023, https://www.ons.gov.uk/).

How was this assessed?

Assessed by gemini-3-flash-preview on 24 Mar 2026

Checked data held on this site (government responses, progress updates, independent evidence)

External sources searched: www.gov.uk, www.legislation.gov.uk, hansard.parliament.uk

Jurisdiction

UK-wide