by Ali Rivett, Director of Clinical Affairs, BSR
The first annual report was published in January and revealed wide variation in care across England and Wales. This is consistent with how other national audits have reported in their first year and we expect to identify where improvements have been made following the analysis for the 2nd cohort.
To date, we have disseminated the report to all participating trusts, health boards and commissioning groups and will be presenting further analysis at the BSR annual conference in April. Key to taking forward the recommendations and making a real difference to patient care will, however, be reaching out and engaging with the wider community, particularly in terms of addressing some of the key findings – ensuring timely referrals from primary care and access to a specialist assessment.
Over the next few months, the BSR plans to bring together key stakeholders for a workshop and put together a number of projects. Our intention is to look at all aspects of the findings, prioritise the most important and work closely with the community to address the findings. Before then, we would welcome your help in disseminating the findings to national bodies and local networks. We are also happy to provide copies of the report and briefings, where there is an opportunity to talk about the audit in meetings with parliamentarians and other organisations.
Further details about the findings can be found on the BSR Audits page.