PRIMIS and the AHSN Network shortlisted for the 2020 HSJ Patient Safety Award

PRIMIS and the AHSN Network shortlisted for the 2020 HSJ Patient Safety Award

PRIMIS at the University of Nottingham and the AHSN Network, are delighted to announce that they have been shortlisted for Patient Safety Team of the Year at this year’s HSJ Patient Safety Awards, recognising their outstanding contribution to healthcare through the national rollout of a proven pharmacist-led IT-based intervention to reduce medication error (PINCER).  

PINCER involves searching general practice clinical systems using computerised prescribing safety indicators to identify patients at risk from their medications.  Pharmacists, specifically trained in PINCER, then review the outputs and work with practices on an ongoing basis to reduce both current and future patient risk, using a range of quality improvement tools.

The two organisations, collectively called the PINCER Team, have been shortlisted despite the tough competition from hundreds of applicants. They have been selected based on their ambition, visionary spirit and the demonstrable positive impact that their work has had on improving patient safety in primary care.

The judging panel is made up of a diverse range of highly influential and respected figures within the healthcare community including Rachel Power (Chief Executive, The Patients Association), Jean Knight (Chief Operating Officer, Northamptonshire Healthcare FT) and Vincent Badu (Deputy Chief Executive, Kent & Medway Partnership Trust.

PINCER was developed and tested by researchers at the University of Nottingham in collaboration with colleagues from the Universities of Manchester and Edinburgh. Findings from the PINCER trial, published in the Lancet, demonstrated that PINCER is an effective and cost-effective method for reducing a range of clinically important and commonly made medication errors in primary care. Having developed a replication model for the scale and spread of PINCER, PRIMIS has been working in collaboration with the Medicines Optimisation Leads from all 15 AHSNs in England to roll PINCER out to general practices in their locality. This has involved engaging with Clinical Commissioning Groups (CCGs), Primary Care Networks (PCNs), and general practices and providing training to pharmacists working in primary care to deliver the PINCER intervention.

Since commencing the national rollout in September 2018, 2,430 general practices in 130 CCGs have implemented PINCER showing that a minimum of 23.35 million patient records have been searched to identify instances of potentially hazardous prescribing. In total, 187,534 patients have been identified as being at risk of medication error in at least one prescribing safety indicator at baseline. Analysis of follow-up data from 1,060 practices shows a reduction of 13,387 patients (-14.4%) identified in at least one prescribing safety indicator. Greatest impact can be seen for those indicators associated with gastrointestinal bleed which showed a reduction of 10,599 patients (-25.9%). Over 1,138 pharmacists (of a total 1,622 individuals) have been trained to deliver the PINCER intervention through a combination of eLearning tools, online resources and face-to-face action learning set sessions. These early findings demonstrate the impact that PINCER is having in terms of making primary care prescribing even safer for patients.

Dr Sarah Rodgers, PINCER National Programme Manager, PRIMIS, comments, “We are delighted to have been shortlisted for the Patient Safety Team of the Year Award, recognising the collaborative efforts of PRIMIS and the AHSN Network to roll PINCER out to general practices across England. We are committed to delivering improved outcomes for patients, and to be chosen among the other incredible nominees is a wonderful achievement.  This nomination has been a tremendous boost to staff at PRIMIS and the AHSN Network and I am sure it will bolster our continued efforts to achieve further scale and spread of PINCER in England. We would like to thank the practices, pharmacists and pharmacy technicians who have been implementing PINCER to make primary care prescribing even safer for patients.”

The full list of nominees for the 2020 HSJ Patient Safety Awards can be found on https://awards.patientsafetycongress.co.uk/shortlist.

Winners will be selected ahead of the ceremony, which will take place virtually as part of the Patient Safety Virtual Congress and Awards in November 2020.