PQIP evaluation study: evaluating the impact of PQIP using mixed methods in 8 NHS Trusts

Hospitals are increasingly keen to use data to improve patient care during and after major surgery. However, teams often face barriers such as time pressures, complicated rules around linking data, and poor sharing of information within hospitals.

The Perioperative Quality Improvement Programme (PQIP) was designed to overcome these challenges and support NHS teams to use data for improving surgical care.

This study looked at how PQIP was being used in five NHS hospitals, as well as by the central PQIP team. Researchers carried out interviews with doctors, nurses, managers, and other staff, observed hospital practice, and reviewed documents.

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Key findings included:

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• Awareness of PQIP was mostly limited to core team members, and it was often seen as something led by anaesthetists rather than a whole-team project.

• Local staff sometimes thought of PQIP as an audit or research study rather than a quality improvement tool.

• Data were mainly used by individuals who could connect across clinical, managerial, and data science roles, and in hospitals that had dedicated staff and experience with national audits.

• Financial incentives in other national audits encouraged more widespread engagement, suggesting that similar support could help PQIP gain traction.

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Overall, the study found that using PQIP for quality improvement was challenging in its early stages because of local barriers to collecting, sharing, and applying data. However, national-level strategies—such as training, coordination, and financial support—helped encourage collaboration and could strengthen PQIP’s impact over time.

Lead Investigator