About the NMPA switch to the Maternity Services Data Set (MSDS) - England only

When will the NMPA switch to using the MSDS?
From the next reporting year of the clinical audit onward, i.e. starting with MSDS data covering births between 1 April 2017 and 31 March 2018.

Are there any changes for Scotland or Wales?
No; the NMPA already uses central datasets for births in Scotland and Wales.

Why is the NMPA switching to the MSDS?
From the start of the NMPA, it has always been the plan to use central datasets like the MSDS in order to minimise the burden of data submission on trusts and boards. The switch will enable trusts to focus on optimising MSDS data quality in the longer term, which will support a range of national reporting activities to benefit maternity care. It will bring England in line with Scotland and Wales, for which the NMPA already uses central maternity datasets.

Does the trust need to submit any data to the NMPA in future?
It will not be necessary to submit a clinical data extract to the NMPA as this information will now come from the MSDS, with the MSDS extract supplied directly to the NMPA by NHS England.

What happens if you find problems with data quality in our MSDS data?
As before, the NMPA team will be undertaking careful data quality assessments. Our approach to these assessments is informed by our previous work in this area and draws on both methodological and clinical expertise. As with our previous publications, where we discover data quality problems for a particular variable within a trust, the trust will be excluded from audit measures that require this variable and results will not be published. The same principle applies to site level results. We appreciate that some trusts may be concerned that insufficient MSDS data completeness for 2017/18 could result in exclusion from some or all NMPA measures, but HQIP will not impose penalties on trusts.

Can we resubmit corrected data either to NHS England to pass on, or directly to the NMPA?
No; while NHS England’s two month MSDS submission window is open, it is possible to make as many submissions as needed for the relevant month. Once it is closed, no further submissions are possible and the data cannot be refreshed later. Because the data will have been ‘locked’ following submission to NHS England, and because the NMPA works to a strict timescale, it will not be possible for trusts to resubmit data either to NHS England or to the NMPA. While all MSDS data for the year 2017/18 will already have been submitted and their submission window will have been closed, careful scrutiny prior to future MSDS submissions and action on data quality feedback will help ensure your trust’s data can be fully used.

What feedback is there on our data quality?
Trusts can access detailed reports on their MSDS data quality prior to, and at the point of submission, via NHS England’s submission portal. Individual feedback is also provided to the trust following each MSDS submission via the data quality scorecard emailed to trusts. The NMPA site level results of the data quality assessments for the last NMPA reporting period (based on data submitted directly from your trust’s electronic maternity information system) can be found on the NMPA website; these will also be a useful source of data quality information. The NMPA are also able to provide local or regional presentations to staff to present relevant data findings – please contact us if this would be of benefit to your unit.

Will any NMPA measures change as a result of the switch?
From the start of the NMPA, it has always been the plan to use central datasets like the MSDS to minimise the burden of data submission on trusts. To this end, the previous NMPA data extract specification followed the MSDS format closely. This means that changes to the construction of the measures are unlikely. However, data availability may impact on the number of measures the NMPA will be able to report and individual trust data quality and completeness may impact on the number of trusts or sites which can be included in each measure.

What will happen when the MSDS v2.0 is introduced in spring 2019?
We have been working closely with NHS England to ensure that the data items needed to construct the NMPA measures are present in the MSDS v2.0. As with the current version of the MSDS, careful mapping of data items is needed to ensure the correct flow of information. This may be most effectively undertaken by clinicians/IT midwives and data specialists in collaboration, and in discussion with your electronic maternity system supplier.

Will the MSDS extract contain personal identifiable data?
MSDS data will be linked to Hospital Episode Statistics (HES), and the Office for National Statistics (ONS) birth and mortality registers for English trusts by the Data Linkage Service at NHS England. The MSDS extract and any linked data will be provided in pseudonymised form to the NMPA by NHS Digital and will not contain any identifiers. Pending approvals, the MSDS extract will contain delivery date and time.

How do we know that data will be kept secure by the NMPA?
The RCOG holds all record level NMPA data on a secure server within the NHS N3 network. The server is operated by the RCOG, and is leased to the RCOG by RedCentric. RedCentric have provided NHS network services for many years and are contracted under an agreement that guarantees secure data processing. All organisations involved in data processing have an up-to-date NHS IG Toolkit assessment. Further details on data security are available on request.

Do we need to inform all women who used our maternity service during the data collection period of the NMPA about how their information will be used?
There is no need to individually contact the women who have used your maternity service, as this was deemed to be impracticable by the Health Research Authority’s Confidentiality Advisory Group. We were instead asked to make ‘reasonable efforts’ to inform women of the processing of their data (including details of how to opt out), by providing a leaflet for trusts to display on their website. Individual leaflets can also be printed out and displayed in appropriate locations around the trust. We regret we are unable to provide printed copies of our information leaflet for women to trusts.

Has our Caldicott Guardian approved this?
We informed all Caldicott Guardians about the NMPA in writing at the start of the audit. No approval was required from Caldicott Guardians, since this is a National Clinical Audit and Patient Outcomes Programme audit, commissioned on behalf of NHS England.

Is there a data sharing agreement between our trust and the NMPA?
The NMPA will have a data sharing agreement with NHS England in order to access the MSDS and link it to other datasets. Therefore, there is no need for a Data Sharing Agreement directly between the NMPA and NHS trusts.

Will women who booked with us and then gave birth elsewhere be included in our results?
No -current data dos not allow us to identify when care has transferred between providers. Your results will only be based on the MSDS data for births that took place under the care of your trust, i.e. on one of your maternity unit sites or at home under the care of your midwives. Until the introduction of the MSDS v2.0, it will not be possible to distinguish between births supervised by NHS midwives and those supervised by independent midwives contracted by the NHS, as may happen in some trusts. If the birth has been submitted to the MSDS it will be treated as an NHS birth for the purpose of the NMPA.