Cite this article:
The effective capture of outcome measures in
the healthcare setting can be traced back to Florence Nightingale’s
investigation of the in-patient mortality of soldiers wounded in
the Crimean war in the 1850s. Only relatively recently has the formalised collection of outcomes
data into Registries been recognised as valuable in itself. With the advent of surgeon league tables and a move towards value
based health care, individuals are being driven to collect, store
and interpret data. Following the success of the National Joint
Cite this article:
There is continued debate as to whether cemented or cementless implants should be utilized in particular cases based upon chronological age. This debate has been rekindled in the UK and other countries by directives mandating certain forms of acetabular and femoral component fixation based exclusively on the chronological age of the patient. This editorial focuses on the literature-based arguments to support the use of cementless total hip arthroplasty (THA), while addressing potential concerns surrounding safety and cost-effectiveness. Cite this article:
Many hospitals do not have a structured process
of consent, the attainment of which can often be rather ‘last-minute’
and somewhat chaotic. This is a surprising state of affairs as spinal
surgery is a high-risk surgical specialty with potential for expensive
litigation claims. More recently, the Montgomery ruling by the United
Kingdom Supreme Court has placed the subject of informed consent
into the spotlight. There is a paucity of practical guidance on how a consent process
can be achieved in a busy clinical setting. The British Association
of Spinal Surgeons (BASS) has convened a working party to address
this need. To our knowledge this is the first example of a national
professional body, representing a single surgical specialty, taking such
a fundamental initiative. In a hard-pressed clinical environment, the ability to achieve
admission reliably on the day of surgery, in patients at ease with
their situation and with little likelihood of late cancellation,
will be of great benefit. It will reduce litigation and improve
the patient experience. Cite this article:
The extent and depth of routine health care data
are growing at an ever-increasing rate, forming huge repositories
of information. These repositories can answer a vast array of questions.
However, an understanding of the purpose of the dataset used and
the quality of the data collected are paramount to determine the
reliability of the result obtained. This Editorial describes the importance of adherence to sound
methodological principles in the reporting and publication of research
using ‘big’ data, with a suggested reporting framework for future Cite this article:
The limitations and benefits of patient-reported
outcome measures, in defining the merits of arthroplasty surgery,
are discussed. Cite this article:
The variation in surgical performance, both between
centres and individual surgeons, has recently been of significant
political, media and public interest. Within the United Kingdom, a
government agenda to increase accountability amongst surgeons has
led to the online publication of ‘surgeon-level’ data. Surgeons,
journalists and the public need to understand these data if they
are to be useful in driving up standards of surgical care. This
Editorial describes the use of Funnel Plots, which are the common
means by which such data are presented, and discusses how the plots
are generated. Cite this article: