An older but comprehensive guide to using control (or SPC) charts including technical elements such as choosing a chart and calculating control limits.

Health Improvement Scotland's guide to using run charts in a practical context.

Created by the Improvement Analytics team at NHS Improvement, this is an Excel based SPC tool which allows users to drop their data into a template and generate an SPC chart.  Has a wide range of functionality built in including:

• Special cause rule identification
• Control limit calculation and rebasing
• Annotation
• Plotting a range of frequencies (daily, weekly)

Requires macros to be enabled in order to work fully.  Updates to this tool are published via the online Measurement for Improvement community, but will be reflected here.

Mike Davidge provides an introduction to measurement for improvement in this 10 minute video.  Requires access to YouTube.

Building on HSE's Incident Cost Calculator, Dr Jane Carthey has developed a Healthcare Incident Cost Calculator.  The tool aims to focus senior manager’s attention on the financial implications of not investing in patient safety, in a climate driven by finance and efficiency savings.

An excellent primer for anyone interested in creating their own SPC charts.  Provides an overview of the principles and technical steps to follow, including relevant formulae, using largely clinical examples.  

An example of an evaluation tool used at Northern Lincolnshire and Goole Hospitals of the Medicines Reconciliation service. This evaluated the significance of pharmacy interventions using a risk assessment matrix.

This is only an example of many evaluations that have been attempted in other pharmacy services but is interesting in the use of a risk matrix to extent of risk avoidance and implications to the Trust if the service was not in place.

Paper outlining a practical approach to identifying admissions from care homes, validated against a 'gold standard'.

This guide provides an overview of the principles of measurement for improvement. It covers how to create appropriate measures and then how to analyse and present the results.

An excellent guide to plotting and using run charts with a clear explanation of the 'run chart rules'.  Particularly useful in explaining and quantifying the 'number of runs' rule.

A Combined Risk Assessment and Screening Tool developed at Doncaster and Bassetlaw Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust. It is designed to be completed within 4 hours of admission and collects information on risks like infection, MUST, falls, pressure ulcers risk assessments and others.

This guide was published by the NHS Institute for Innovation and Improvement and The Association of Public Health Observatories. It focuses on the key principles behind developing, understanding and using indicators.