Data confirms 11 NHS England trusts with higher than expected number of deaths

What is the Summary Hospital-level Mortality Indicator?

The Summary Hospital-level Mortality Indicator (SHMI) compares the actual number of patients who die following hospitalisation against the number of patients who would be expected to die on the basis of average for trusts across England, given the characteristics of the patients treated at that Trust. The SHMI includes deaths that have occurred in hospital or within 30 days of discharge from hospital.

An SHMI number of 1 indicates the observed number of deaths was higher than expected.
An SHMI number of 2 indicates the observed number of deaths was as expected.
An SHMI number of 3 indicates the observed number of deaths was lower than expected, when compared to the national baseline.

For the period covering January to December 2018, the 11 NHS England trusts scoring an SHMI of 1 were:

• Blackpool Teaching Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust
• Bolton NHS Foundation Trust
• Dorset County Hospital NHS Foundation Trust
• East Suffolk And North Essex NHS Foundation Trust
• George Eliot Hospital NHS Trust
• Tameside And Glossop Integrated Care NHS Foundation Trust
• The Dudley Group NHS Foundation Trust
• The Princess Alexandra Hospital NHS Trust
• The Royal Wolverhampton NHS Trust
• United Lincolnshire Hospitals NHS Trust
• Worcestershire Acute Hospitals NHS Trust

In contrast, there were 16 NHS England trusts scoring an SHMI of 3.

Jason Brady, a partner at Blackwater Law Solicitors, commented:

“Patients will understandably be concerned if their local NHS Trust has an SHMI of 1.

Whilst the SHMI alone does not mean the care being provided by the Trust is any worse than any other Trust, it may be an indicator. We would like to see the relevant trusts investigating and identifying the causes of their SHMI score of 1. This will allow for the identification of aspects of care which may be able to be improved and if so, this could lead to a general raising of the standard of care being provided. This may then lead to improved survival rates and therefore an improved SHMI score.”

You can find out how your local NHS trust is performing by using our NHS Performance Tracker.

If you have any concerns regarding the treatment you have received whilst under NHS care, whether in hospital, at a GP surgery or at a dentist, please contact us to find out if one of our specialist medical negligence solicitors can help you make a claim for compensation.

Related stories:

https://blackwaterlaw.co.uk/latest-nhs-patient-safety-incident-data-reveals-over-2000-deaths-in-6-months/

https://blackwaterlaw.co.uk/nhs-performance-figures-march-2019/