audit confirms high standards of ph care in great britain

the latest national audit of pulmonary hypertension has shown performance against national standards has returned to pre-pandemic levels – with specialist centres continuing to provide a high-quality service to patients. 

the national audit of ph (naph) sets out to measure the quality of care provided to people who are referred to pulmonary hypertension services in great britain. data is collected from all the centres in england, and from the scottish pulmonary vascular unit in glasgow.

key findings from the 13^th audit, published in january 2023, included:

• 96% of patients were referred to a specialist were diagnosed within 6 months. (95% target)
• 93% of patients received a right heart catheterisation before being given drugs to treat ph. (95% target)
• 92% of patients who have had at least one consultation in the last year have had an emphasis-10 quality of life score recorded (90% target)
• 96% of patients taking ph medication have had at least one consultation within the last 13 months. (95% target)

the audit is commissioned by nhs england, delivered by nhs digital, and supported by nhs scotland, nhs wales, and the national pulmonary hypertension centres of united kingdom and ireland physicians’ committee.

here at the pha uk we also continue to the support the audit on behalf of the patient community, after funding its first year. and every year we present the key findings in a clear and accessible digest, after our members told us which of the measures are most important to them.

you can view our digest of the findings here

professor david kiely, lead clinician for the national audit of ph said: “despite the challenges that the nhs faces, the national audit of ph once again demonstrates that the uk provides high quality care for people affected by ph.

“what makes the audit so unique, and impactful, is the contribution that patients, the pha uk, healthcare professionals and commissioners have made to ensure that the audit standards reflect what is important to people affected by ph.”

dr iain armstrong, chair of the pha uk said: “our specialist centres are jewels in the crown of the nhs, and as this audit shows, they continue to provide outstanding care. the strength of the service is clearly demonstrated by its ability to ‘bounce back’ so quickly from the challenges posed by the pandemic.

“patients and their loved ones should feel very encouraged by the findings of this report, which provide further assurances of the standards of treatment and support provided by their ph teams.”

you can view the full audit report here