Measuring and communicating impact is essential for sustaining investment, building the case for expansion, and demonstrating value to stakeholders. Effective measurement also enables continuous improvement by identifying what is working and where further attention is needed.
Building your measurement approach
Establish baseline data before implementation. Without a clear baseline, demonstrating improvement is difficult. The pre-implementation assessment on our ‘Work Before the Work’ webpage provides a framework for gathering this data.
Identify a small number of priority metrics. Attempting to measure everything creates reporting burden without adding value. Focus on three to five metrics that are most directly linked to your implementation objectives and that you have the data infrastructure to track reliably.
Combine quantitative and qualitative evidence. Numbers demonstrate scale, but stories demonstrate meaning. Case studies, staff feedback, and patient experience contribute to a compelling picture of impact that resonates with different audiences.
Report regularly and visibly. Include Scan4Safety metrics in quality and safety reporting at ward, divisional, and board level. Visibility sustains organisational focus and helps identify emerging issues early.
Connect measurement to governance. Scanning compliance and safety outcomes should be reported through existing governance structures rather than through parallel processes. This embeds Scan4Safety in the organisation’s quality management system.
What to measure?
As seen on the work before the work webpage, a pre-implementation assessment can help establish baseline metrics against which improvement will be measured after implementation. Other measures will help to establish the impact Scan4Safety is having and how well implementation is progressing.
Although you are likely to identify other measures specific to your organisation and the clinical areas you are implementing in, below or some suggested measures to consider:
Patient safety outcomes
- Number of misidentified patients
- Reduction in medication administration errors
- Reduction in wrong implant or wrong site incidents
- Speed and completeness of product recall response
- Detection of expired or recalled products before use
- Completeness and accuracy of MDOR data submissions
- Scanning compliance rate — proportion of eligible items scanned at point of care
- Volume of point-of-care safety checks completed
Operational efficiency outcomes
- Clinical time released from manual documentation and stock management
- Reduction in procedure cancellations due to stock unavailability
- Stock wastage reduction and inventory accuracy
- Speed of stock ordering and receipt processes
- Quality and completeness of national data submissions
Financial outcomes
- Stock wastage reduction value
- Administrative cost savings from automation
- Reduction in procedure cancellations and associated costs
- Avoided costs from patient safety incidents, including reduced litigation claims and unnecessary extended hospital stays
- Return on investment against implementation costs
Real-world evidence
NHS organisations that have implemented Scan4Safety have demonstrated significant and measurable benefits. Key examples include:
- Product recall identification time reduced from 8.33 days to under 35 minutes at Leeds Teaching Hospitals
- Over 140,000 clinical hours released across the original demonstrator sites
- 700 clinical hours per trust per year saved on stock management through inventory management systems
- £5.6 million in savings achieved across the six original demonstrator sites in the first year