Single consultant data repository
Paterson Inquiry · Report of the Independent Inquiry into the Issues raised by Paterson · Issued 4 February 2020 · Addressed to: Department of Health and Social Care
Source — verbatim from the inquiry
●Inquiry recommendation
We recommend that there should be a single repository of the whole practice of consultants across England, setting out their practising privileges and other critical consultant performance data – for example, how many times a consultant has performed a particular procedure and how recently. This should be accessible and understandable to the public. It should be mandated for use by managers and healthcare professionals in both the NHS and the independent sector.
Paterson Inquiry, Report of the Independent Inquiry into the Issues raised by Paterson · 4 Feb 2020 Source PDF →
Published evidence summary
Publicly available evidence relating to this recommendation:
- The December 2022 implementation update stated that the National Consultant Information Programme (NCIP) had expanded to 104 NHS trusts (77% of all trusts) covering 11 surgical specialties, providing an online portal for consultants to access activity and outcome metrics against local and national benchmarks (Paterson Inquiry Implementation Update, DHSC, December 2022).
- The December 2022 update stated that PHIN had published its 2022-2026 delivery plan in July 2022, with a target of 80% coverage of high-risk procedures within three years (Paterson Inquiry Implementation Update, DHSC, December 2022).
- No published confirmation that a single cross-sector repository of consultant practice data covering both NHS and independent sector has been established has been identified to March 2026.
Response — verbatim from government
●Department of Health and Social Care
Accepted in principle. The government is improving data flows to CQC and GMC to give them better oversight of consultants' full scope of practice. NHS England is developing a workforce repository and working with partner organisations to improve data sharing on consultant activity. Work is ongoing to develop solutions that provide meaningful and accessible information for patients and the public. (Source: Government Response, December 2021)
Department of Health and Social Care · 16 Dec 2021
Evidence trail — what's actually happened since
No published activity has been recorded against this recommendation yet.
Each entry above links to a primary source — gov.uk written statement, consultation response document, or inspection report. The Index does not characterise government intent; it tracks what has been published.
How this page is built
Source and Response are verbatim from primary documents. The Evidence trail records published activity since — written statements, consultation outcomes, inspection findings, parliamentary references. The Index does not paraphrase or characterise intent; it tracks what has been published. Where the evidence is the absence of action (a missed deadline, a slipped timetable), that absence is documented from primary sources rather than inferred.
This recommendation's data is verified periodically against primary sources. The Index is monitored for staleness weekly.