Briefing / Value challenge 2.0 – How patient-level costing (PLICS) can support the implementation of Getting it Right First Time

Value challenge 2.0 describes how patient-level costing (PLICS) can support the implementation of Getting it Right First Time (GIRFT).

The concept of ‘value’ in healthcare – maximising the outcomes which matter to people at the lowest possible cost – is increasingly seen as a key lever for supporting the delivery of high-quality sustainable care. The challenge is how to do this in practice. What is clear is that clinicians and finance staff need to work closely together to support improvements in value.

One major ‘value’ initiative being rolled out currently across England is the Getting it Right First Time (GIRFT) programme. This national programme is designed to improve the quality of care within the NHS by reducing unwarranted variations.

The Institute fully supports the principles underpinning GIRFT and views it as a valuable tool to improve clinical quality, while at the same time increasing efficiency.

The Institute’s value challenge 2.0 considers the extent to which patient-level costing (PLICS) data is used by acute trusts to support the implementation of GIRFT. Those who do use PLICS data to better understand the variation highlighted by GIRFT find that it yields significant benefits.

Using PLICS data as part of GIRFT reviews can help ensure that action plans are robust, leading to reductions in unwarranted variation and improvements in the quality of care, but our findings indicate that PLICS data is not widely used by acute trusts as part of GIRFT reviews.

The Institute’s value challenge 2.0 calls for a wider use of PLICS to support the implementation of the GIRFT programme within trusts.

The Institute programme supports the NHS to improve costing, turn data into powerful patient-level information, champion multi-disciplinary engagement and ultimately drive value.  To find out more about becoming a member of the Institute, contact [email protected]