An Introduction to The Information Standard

1. An Introduction to The Information Standard

2. What is The Information Standard? The Information Standard is a certification scheme that helps health and care professionals and the public identify reliable sources of quality, evidence-based consumer health and care information through the use of an easily recognised quality mark

3. What are the key elements of The Information Standard? Currently the Department of Health commission this service Certification of prospective organisations and ongoing assessments are carried out by emqc Ltd on behalf of Capita who are the scheme operators Organisations who go through the Information Standard have to demonstrate they have robust information production processes. The key pillars that underpin this and the organisation needs to demonstrate are that the information they produce is: Balanced and evidence-based User tested Regularly reviewed

4. How has the scheme evolved? Launched in November 2009 with 36 pilot organisations 2010, progress slow with only 5 new members signing up to scheme Step change in 2011 in our approach to organisational engagement leading to 126 new members signing up with a further 56 undergoing certification 2012 saw continued growth and membership grew to around 200 certified members, despite some uncertainty around the schemes relationship with the new online Portal that will be replacing NHS Choices and NHS Direct A range of events and communications was run across 2012 with more planned for 2013- these are open to members and Certification Body partners

5. TIS and the new Integrated Customer Service Platform (ICSP) Ownership for The Information Standard will pass from The Department of Health to the NHS Commissioning Board from 1st April 2013 This is important as the NHSCB is also responsible for the new ICSP, which is a new online portal that combines many of the existing services, including NHS Choices, NHS Direct, and will provide systems to allow individuals to access their personal health records Over 2012 TIS has worked closely with the NHSCB to help them understand the importance of Quality Assurance and the role it plays in the provision of health and care information Quality Assurance is central to the new portal and TIS will play a central role in the provision of this

6. Why is there a consumer need? • 77% of service users look up some form of health or social care information every year • 75% tell us they find it hard to work out whether information is trustworthy or not • Thousands of organisations produce or syndicate health or social care information in the UK, but people don’t know what they can trust • Ensuring local service users have access to trusted, evidence based and balanced health and care information should be a key deliverable for local government, particularly in the area of Public Health

7. What do the public tell us? They want to manage their own health and wellbeing, including prevention They want to have more trust in health and social care information, leading to increased confidence and empowerment They want to be better informed and better able to understand options available to ensure the right decisions and choices are made with them Delivering against these drivers will lead to better outcomes, both medical and personal, resulting in improved quality of life

8. People with long term conditions want more help Better, more joined up services Better knowledge/understanding of condition and treatments Better understanding of healthy eating More guidance and support to gain confidence in self-care More information about devices/courses/support groups Better understanding of prevention strategies People want to take control of their own health and feel that they have the confidence to make the right care decisions for themselves

9. Building on the Information Strategy Released in mid 2012, the Information Strategy entitled, “The power of information: Putting all of us in control of the health and care information we need”, provided a number of important key messages around information: “Information can bring enormous benefits. It is the lifeblood of good health and wellbeing” Information should be regarded as a health and care service in its own right for us all “Information for patients and service users is an integral part of care. Like medicine, good information can heal but poor information or poor handling of information can harm” We want patients to have access to clear information and advice that helps them understand and make informed decisions about the type of care and support they need

10. Who are our current members? A broad range of large and small organisations from a number of sectors Charities NHS Local Authorities Commercial Organisations 200+ organisations currently certified 50+ going through the process to become certified

11. How extensive is the Standard? Around 33% of all Health Information web traffic is Information Standard certified Information Standard member organisations provide specialist information all of the Top 60 recognised long term conditions 90% of the 5000+ assets on the Information Prescription Service comes from Information Standard certified organisations Many of the key information providers are already certified members including NHS Choices, Patient UK, Macmillan, CancerUK and THT and many of these organisations provide services locally as well as nationally

12. Why Join? What’s in it for organisations? Creates information production processes that lead to better quality and more efficient ways of working Provides transparency of information costs, leading to cost savings Helps deliver information is high quality, relevant and trustworthy Demonstrates that you understand the importance of health and care information for local service users. Provides access to a wide range of shared resources and wider networks Demonstrates a commitment to the provision of quality consumer health and care information that support s the local community

13. The 4 steps to Certification Understanding the Standard Face to face - Book an initial meeting or a workshop with a consultant from The Information Standard to explain the Standard in greater detail and to better understand all of the clauses and their impact Reviewing your current processes Self-audit tool - Complete the online self-audit tool to understand your current compliance with the 18 clauses of the Standard. This will enable you to develop a detailed action plan. Preparing for certification Contact and sign up with emqc Ltd- select and sign a contract and agree your action plan and timeline. Then contact The Information Standard Support Team and book a visit to help prepare for your pre-assessment audit Certification Book a pre-assessment with your emqc Ltd in case you have any non conformities. emqc Ltd will then conduct a full audit of your process and send medical evidence to be checked. 28 days after your assessment you will become fully certified. 1 2 3 4

14. Quotes from existing members The information standard is now business as usual for our Adult Social Care teams. It,s all about being able to provide good quality and reliable information for our service users SW – Oxford County Council We felt it was important to apply to the Information Standard scheme, as membership would help us to reinforce and demonstrate our commitment to producing accurate, balanced, clear and reliable information for our service users MJ- Liverpool City Council The experience overall was difficult at the time but we got through it, and in the end it was very worthwhile. We are very pleased we did it. NO - Cued Speech Association What’s special about the Information Standard, is that it has made a fundamental difference to the way we work and has significantly improved our methods of information production DP-Bradford Local Involvement Network

15. If you would like to know more about emqc Ltd or The Information Standard: Have a look at our website - www.emqc.co.uk Or join us on LinkedIn - Follow us on Twitter - Or you can call or E-mail us at: 0845 3048600 Info@emqc.co.uk

16. One final thought- “As a general rule, the most successful man in life is the man who has the best information” - Benjamin Disraeli