Mike Durkin, NHS England’s national clinical director for patient safety marks the tenth anniversary of the national reporting and learning system (NRLS).

The NRLS was the first attempt to aggregate incident data at national level.

“The data we gather through NRLS enables us to identify emerging risks and patterns in patient safety incidents at a national level, which may not be obvious at a local level. It also provides a rich source of data for patient safety research teams at universities and in hospitals, galvanising innovation in safety care” Durkin said.

He said NHS England was in a process of developing a new incident reporting system based on NRLS and would being consulting with a number of key partners, including patient groups, to ensure the new reporting system is designed to meet the needs of those who matter shortly.