January 2009

Welcome to the very first edition of Information Pulse. This month the focus is on the reporting of information.

Reporting is the way in which we present information. It is a vital part of the information jigsaw but one where the pulse is currently quite weak. Indeed, there are claims from the hinterland that the pulse cannot be found at all, or at best is very weak.

There are three important aspects to reporting which need to be given more thought if we are serious about restoring the health of our reporting system.

Firstly, we need to be clear about the type of report needed for specific activities. Secondly, there is a need to present information in ways which are engaging and visually compelling, and thirdly, the need to ensure people can understand the information that is being presented.

Starting with the first of these, I will mention five specific types of reports:
i) activity reporting
ii) outcome reporting
iii) integrated reporting
iv) interactive reporting
v) benchmark reporting

i) Activity reports are, as the name suggests, the way in which we present activity information, such as the number of bed nights and the like. MHINC (mental health information national collection) reports have been fulfilling this reporting requirement for the past eight years.

ii) Outcome reports are based on outcome assessment ratings, which currently mean HoNOS scores. There has been no national reporting of outcomes and little at DHB level during the past few years. Since PRIMHD (programme for the integration of mental health data) will also capture outcome data it will now be possible to have specific outcome reports.

iii) Integrated reporting is a combination of activity and outcome reporting. Some areas of reporting, such as seclusion, lend themselves to integrated reporting very well.

iv) Interactive reporting is generated by people entering data into a particular electronic tool. For example, MOHsys (the Mental Health Outcome System operated by Te Pou - previously know as the Decision Support System or DSS) is a tool designed to provide outcome reports based on particular types of requests from the user.

v) Benchmark reporting is one way in which services can present comparative information, particularly when combined with dashboards (dashboards are based on the analogy of car or plane dashboards, and are designed to present information quickly and easily, usually with dials and summarised information).

Whatever the type of report, it needs to be presented in an interesting and compelling way, using tabular, graphical and dashboard styles of presentation.

Finally, we need to ensure people understand what they are looking at in reports through the use of explanatory and interpretive material. We will have more to say on these last two items in subsequent Information Pulse columns.

About the author
Mark Smith is Clinical Lead Specialist with Te Pou's Information Programme he can be contacted at mark.smith   "at" tepou.co.nz for any comments relating to this column.

Page last updated: 14 January 2009