Checks to seek out high death rates in NHS

Summary Hospital-level Mortality Indicators (SHMIs) will come into force in April and will replace the variety of other standards currently in use.

The move comes after a report into the scandal at Stafford Hospital found the NHS was slow to react to the high numbers of deaths.

About 400 more people died at Stafford Hospital between 2005 and 2008 than would normally have been expected.

At present, only about 80 per cent of hospital deaths are recorded but the new system is designed to capture 100 per cent.

Deaths in hospitals across England will be monitored as well as those occurring within 30 days of discharge.

The SHMI system is designed to provide an "early trigger to probe potential problems", according to the Department of Health.

The indicator will be adjusted to take into account factors outside of a hospital's control.

Professor Sir Bruce Keogh, who commissioned the review, said: "We are the first country to make a systematic attempt to engage healthcare providers, academics, institutions of medicine and the commercial sector in developing a clear method for assessing expected hospital death rates.

"The methodology will be open to public and academic scrutiny and debate so that it improves and becomes more useful over time."