PHIN works to make information available to patients in an understandable way, so that they can make more informed choices about the hospitals and consultants that they use for private procedures (diagnostic tests and surgery etc). We have added a new element to our hospital profiles which shows whether private hospitals in the UK are actively collecting Patient Reported Outcome Measures (PROMs) data, supporting transparency and encouraging wider participation.
What are PROMs?
Patient Reported Outcome Measures (PROMs) come from patients taking the time to share their experiences by completing questionnaires before and after their treatment. They do this to help future patients better understand whether they need treatment and what their experiences might be.
The value of the PROMs is that it can show how patients typically are before treatment and after treatment, to help manage a sense of suitability for treatment as well as expectations after it.
The 'after' questions are asked several months after surgery, usually between two to six months, depending on the type of treatment, so that the patient has had sufficient time to recover and feel the expected full benefits.
How do I see which hospitals collect PROMs data?
When you visit any of the 600+ hospital profiles on our website, you will find out lots of information about them, and that includes whether they are participating in the collection and publication of PROMs information, and if so which ones (not all procedures have PROMs surveys).
What do I do when I know if my hospital collects PROMs data?
PROMs won't be the only thing you consider when choosing a hospital, but it's one more thing to be aware of.
If If the hospital you're planning to use has PROMs information you can ask for details of how you might expect your treatment to go. If it isn't collecting them, you might want to ask why.
To explore PROMs in more detail, and see how your procedure might affect you, see our PROMS Explorer.
To explore hospital profiles use the search bar at the top of each page of this website.
