Emergency care data set

What is the Emergency Care Data Set?

The Emergency Care Data Set (ECDS) was first introduced in 2017 and is now embedded as the national data set for urgent and emergency care.

The ECDS includes a wide variety of data items, from patient demographics and chief complaint to diagnosis and discharge. Capturing this information builds an accurate picture of the demands faced by Emergency Departments (EDs) and of patient care.

ECDS provides information to support and optimise the care provided in EDs. It shows us a picture of patient needs, and capacity and demand in EDs throughout England. This enables us to make evidence based and informed decisions to improve patient care, experience, and outcomes.

The vision for the ECDS is for it to become the single source of ‘true data’ for ED activity in England.

What about ECDS in a Same Day Emergency Care (SDEC) setting?

Accurately recording SDEC activity via a consistent data set is an important part of improving urgent and emergency care (UEC) services. ECDS will provide this consistency. The Information Standard Notice (ISN) for ECDS version 4 was published in January 2023 and mandates that all SDEC services must record their patient data in the ECDS by 1 July 2024.

Information about SDEC services and uptake, will be collated to provide an understanding of how and why people use the service. Having access to this data means we can improve planning and reduce pressure on the system, ultimately leading to better patient experience and outcomes.

As part of the national SDEC model, the ECDS is being expanded to include SDEC services and will enable a more comprehensive view of patient flow across the UEC system

Following the publication of the 2024/25 priorities and operational planning guidance,  all trusts are asked to consistently and accurately record key metrics including SDEC activity in the ECDS.

Same Day Emergency Care Collaboration (SDEC) Platform (FutureNHS)

For hospital providers and IT supplier colleagues the SDEC collaboration platform on the FutureNHS is available, where colleagues can:

  • discuss national, regional, and local topics
  • find SDEC in ECDS information, guides, and help
  • see what support is available with submission and data quality
  • use discussion forums to ask questions and share knowledge
  • contact the national team managing the SDEC in ECDS programme

The SDEC collaboration platform online workspace is a collaborative platform designed for teams and providers to share best practice, access information and guidance, and raise questions to the national team. SDEC collaboration platform here.

Benefits of SDEC in ECDS

Information about SDEC services transitioning to ECDS will be monitored by the national team. We will use this data to provide a further understanding of how SDEC services are used across England.

The data will allow hospitals across England to review their data, ultimately leading to better patient experience and outcomes. Nationally the data will provide the evidence to support with future SDEC policy design.

ECDS guidance and documents

For SDEC in ECDS related queries please email: england.sdec@nhs.net