Trustmarque gives Scarborough NHS Trust a healthy report

VAR installs QlikView BI tool as Trust looks to bring down mortality rates through more targeted data use

Trustmarque is celebrating the completion of a BI project to help Scarborough Acute NHS Trust compile targeted data reports.

The VAR took just four weeks to deploy BI tool QlikView for the Trust – which employs 2,400 staff and delivers hospital services to 240,000 – to help it connect and pull data from its various information systems as it strives to bring down mortality rates.

Manni Imiavan, head of information, directorate of finance and procurement at the Trust, said: "Excel was pervasive within the organisation but the reports became instantly out of date and were difficult to maintain.

“We had a number of different tools in play which all had strengths and weaknesses, but none seemed to tick all the boxes.”

Because Trustmarque already has a long-standing relationship with the Trust, it was the first port of call, he explained.

"After speaking with our account manager and business intelligence practice lead, they were able to identify a range of products that we had not considered, one of them being QlikView," added Imiavan. "What really sold us on QlikView was the fact that Trustmarque was actually able to provide us with a demo of the product using dashboards created specifically for the NHS.

“There is no doubt it has saved us money and a lot of time. At one point we had seriously considered getting external people in to do our dashboards, which would have cost us £500 per day. With the training we have received from Trustmarque we have been able to do everything in-house. The investment we have made in QlikView has undoubtedly been one of the most significant strategic decisions taken over the past few years," he concluded.

Mike Cawthorn, practice lead for Trustmarque's business performance management team, added: "Business intelligence can help health managers get the most out of the data available. Healthcare institutions are not short of information, but the challenge lies in making this data usable and being able to understand what it means, and this is where QlikView can play its part.

“With increasing targets to improve patient care, coupled with reduced budgets, it is a very hard time for the NHS. Using technology to reduce the burden of reporting and to give a clearer view to support a business case for investment is critical at this time and we would strongly urge all institutions to take Scarborough’s lead.”