Performance management is the application of scientific techniques to
the performance of organisations. In this sense it is quite simple but
the devil is in the implementation.
a simple measure is treatment and death. This was how the manslaughter
of the elderly using antipsychotics was detected. Those treated lived
half as long as those not treated. It took a research study to publicise
this healthcare disaster. A decent performance management system would
have prevented this disaster sooner.
The management information systems need to be place first. The data
needs to be record and centrally collected. When I used to work in
childrens services this was achieved by periodic data returns where
local councils submitted their data to the government. New technology
makes it possible to easily access the data at local level with a much
higher frequency - perhaps even instantaneously. This possibility made a
reality through the advance of IT systems could make it possible for
national level monitoring of performance to protect patients.
This may sound like Big Brother culture applied to the NHS but I feel
this is an ad homenim argument. The privacy and autonomy concerns of
health professionals doesn't outweigh patient safety. These are the sort
of systems which might be able to detect doctors like Harold Shipman or
prevent unnecessary deaths in social care such as Victoria Climbe.
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