National Clinical Audit and Patient Outcomes Programme

The National Clinical Audit and Patient Outcomes Programme (NCAPOP) is a set of centrally-funded national projects that provide local trusts with a common format by which to collect audit data. The projects analyse the data centrally and feed back comparative findings to help participants identify necessary improvements for patients. Most of these projects involve services in England and Wales; some also include services from Scotland and Northern Ireland.

From 2008, the Paediatric Intensive Care Audit Network (PICANet) and the National Joint Registry (NJR) are included in the programme, with further expansion expected.

NCAPOP will be extended to other areas of healthcare that are considered a priority by the National Clinical Audit Advisory Group (NCAAG) and by the Department of Health, and HQIP will seek to ensure that all NCAPOP audits are:

• timely in providing response on a local level
• effecting change in practice
• led by clinicians
• offering value for money.

What is national audit and patient outcomes measurement?

NCAPO measurement finds out how clinical audit improves patient outcomes by improving professional practice and the general quality of services delivered.

The projects allow:

• local bodies to identify and make local improvements for patients
• patients to question the quality of their care and exercise choice
• the Care Quality Commission (formerly the Healthcare Commission) to corroborate local bodies' self assessments against national standards
• the Department of Health and NHS Wales to assess progress against national initiatives

• Are patients given the best care?
• Are they better?
• Do they feel better?