prisms - ndc

PRISMS Data Manual

Edition 2.4

Information Services Division

PRISMS Data Manual v2.4

© 2010 NHS National Service Scotland. All rights reserved. of 67

Acknowledgements: Thanks are due to the following for their contributions to this Data Manual. Bruce Beadle eVADIS Information

Manager Information Services Division, Edinburgh

Iain Bishop Principal Pharmacist NSS Information Services, Edinburgh

Duncan Buchanan Principal Statistician Information Services Division, Edinburgh

Bill Gold Information Analyst Information Services Division, Edinburgh

Sean MacBride-Stewart Primary Care Pharmacist NHS Lothian

PRISMS Development Team

Information Services Division, Edinburgh

PRISMS Implementation Team


Don Page Technical Services Pharmacist


John Philips General Practitioner Inverkeithing Medical Practice

Dave Syme General Practitioner Killin Medical Centre

Jim Waldron Principal Information Manager


Chris Waugh Senior Information Adviser Information Services Division, Edinburgh



History of Changes: Edition 1.1 7 June 2005 Section 8.3 No of Items (Dispensed) –

definition updated Section 10 – new definition for GIC per 1000 Weighted Patients added.

Edition 2.0 21 July 2006 Major review following Organisational

Change. Edition 2.1 6 September 2006 Section 10 updated following changes to

Derived Facts class in completion of Change Request CR009.

Edition 2.2 6 December 2006 Section 4 updated following changes to

Time Class in completion of Change Requests CR004 and CR007.

Edition 2.3 1 May 2007 Section 5 updated following changes to

BNF Hierarchy in completion of Change Request CR029. Section 11 added following the addition of new list size objects in completion of Change Request CR002.

Edition 2.4 1 August 2010 Section added on new Scotland object in

completion of Change Request CR046. Section 2.14 & 2.27 in completion of Change Request CR032. New appendix added for NRAC weighted list size. Sections on Organisation Details/Misc/List Size objects and filters, Nurse Prescribing code and Dentist Prescribing code removed. Following sections updated with new values – 2.11, 2.12, 2.13, 3.7, 3.8, 6.2 & 6.6.



1.0 Introduction ....................................................................................................................................................... 9

1.1 Manual Content .................................................................................................................................................................9 1.2 Terminology ......................................................................................................................................................................9

1.2.1. Universe........................................................................................................................................................................................9 1.2.2. Objects .......................................................................................................................................................................................10 1.2.3. Classes and Subclassess ......................................................................................................................................................... 11

2.0 Introduction to Organisation Details Class ................................................................................................. 12 Organisational Details .......................................................................................................................................... 13

2.1 Scotland ID ......................................................................................................................................................................13 2.2 Scotland Name ................................................................................................................................................................13

NHS Board Hierarchy............................................................................................................................................ 13 2.3 HEALTH BOARD REFERENCE ......................................................................................................................................13 2.4 HEALTH BOARD NAME..................................................................................................................................................13

2.4.1 Health Board Address Line 1 ........................................................................................................................................................13 2.4.2 Health Board Address Line 2 ........................................................................................................................................................13 2.4.3 Health Board Address Line 3 ........................................................................................................................................................13 2.4.4 Health Board Address Line 4 ........................................................................................................................................................13 2.4.5 Health Board Post Code ...............................................................................................................................................................13 2.4.6 Health Board Telephone No .........................................................................................................................................................13 2.4.7 Health Board Fax No ....................................................................................................................................................................13

2.5 SUB HEALTH BOARD REFERENCE .............................................................................................................................13 2.6 SUB HEALTH BOARD NAME .........................................................................................................................................13

2.6.1 Sub HB Address Line 1 ................................................................................................................................................................14 2.6.2 Sub HB Address Line 2 ................................................................................................................................................................14 2.6.3 Sub HB Address Line 3 ................................................................................................................................................................14 2.6.4 Sub HB Address Line 4 ................................................................................................................................................................14 2.6.5 Sub HB Post Code........................................................................................................................................................................14 2.6.6 Sub HB Telephone No..................................................................................................................................................................14 2.6.7 Sub HB Fax No.............................................................................................................................................................................14

2.7 PRACTICE REFERENCE ................................................................................................................................................14 2.8 PRACTICE NAME ............................................................................................................................................................14

2.8.1 Practice Address Line 1................................................................................................................................................................15 2.8.2 Practice Address Line 2................................................................................................................................................................15 2.8.3 Practice Address Line 3................................................................................................................................................................15 2.8.4 Practice Address Line 4................................................................................................................................................................15 2.8.5 Practice Post Code .......................................................................................................................................................................15 2.8.6 Practice Telephone No .................................................................................................................................................................15 2.8.7 Practice Fax No ............................................................................................................................................................................15

2.9 PRESCRIBER REFERENCE ...........................................................................................................................................15 2.10 PROFESSIONAL REG NO ............................................................................................................................................17 2.11 PRESCRIBER NAME.....................................................................................................................................................17

2.11.1 First Forename ...........................................................................................................................................................................18 2.11.2 Second Forename ......................................................................................................................................................................18 2.11.3 Prescriber Address Line 1 ..........................................................................................................................................................18 2.11.4 Prescriber Address Line 2 ..........................................................................................................................................................18 2.11.5 Prescriber Address Line 3 ..........................................................................................................................................................18 2.11.6 Prescriber Address Line 4 ..........................................................................................................................................................18 2.11.7 Prescriber Post Code..................................................................................................................................................................18 2.11.8 Prescriber Telephone No............................................................................................................................................................18 2.11.9 Prescriber Fax No.......................................................................................................................................................................18

2.12 PRESCRIBER TYPE ......................................................................................................................................................18 2.13 PRESCRIBER SUB-TYPE .............................................................................................................................................18 2.14 PRESCRIBER LEVEL....................................................................................................................................................19

CHP Hierarchy ....................................................................................................................................................... 20 2.15 CHP Reference ..............................................................................................................................................................20 2.16 CHP NAME .....................................................................................................................................................................20

2.16.1 CHP Address Line 1 ...................................................................................................................................................................20 2.16.2 CHP Address Line 2 ...................................................................................................................................................................20 2.16.3 CHP Address Line 3 ...................................................................................................................................................................20 2.16.4 CHP Address Line 4 ...................................................................................................................................................................20 2.16.5 CHP Post Code ..........................................................................................................................................................................20



2.16.6 CHP Telephone No.....................................................................................................................................................................20 2.16.7 CHP Fax No................................................................................................................................................................................20

2.17 Sub CHP REFERENCE .................................................................................................................................................20 2.18 Sub CHP NAME .............................................................................................................................................................20

2.18.1 Sub CHP Address Line 1............................................................................................................................................................20 2.18.2 Sub CHP Address Line 2............................................................................................................................................................20 2.18.3 Sub CHP Address Line 3............................................................................................................................................................20 2.18.4 Sub CHP Address Line 4............................................................................................................................................................20 2.18.5 Sub CHP Post Code ...................................................................................................................................................................20 2.18.6 Sub CHP Telephone No .............................................................................................................................................................20 2.18.7 Sub CHP Fax No ........................................................................................................................................................................20

2.19 PRACTICE REFERENCE (CHP) ...................................................................................................................................21 2.20 PRACTICE NAME (CHP) ...............................................................................................................................................21

2.20.1 Practice Address Line 1 (CHP) ...................................................................................................................................................21 2.20.2 Practice Address Line 2 (CHP) ...................................................................................................................................................21 2.20.3 Practice Address Line 3 (CHP) ...................................................................................................................................................21 2.20.4 Practice Address Line 4 (CHP) ...................................................................................................................................................21 2.20.5 Practice Post Code (CHP) ..........................................................................................................................................................21 2.20.6 Practice Telephone No (CHP) ....................................................................................................................................................21 2.20.7 Practice Fax No (CHP) ...............................................................................................................................................................21

2.21 PRESCRIBER REFERENCE (CHP) ..............................................................................................................................21 2.22 PROFESSIONAL REG No (CHP)..................................................................................................................................21 2.23 PRESCRIBER NAME (CHP)..........................................................................................................................................21

2.23.1 First Forename (CHP) ................................................................................................................................................................21 2.23.2 Second Forename (CHP) ...........................................................................................................................................................21 2.23.3 Prescriber Address Line 1 (CHP)................................................................................................................................................21 2.23.4 Prescriber Address Line 2 (CHP)................................................................................................................................................21 2.23.5 Prescriber Address Line 3 (CHP)................................................................................................................................................21 2.23.6 Prescriber Address Line 4 (CHP)................................................................................................................................................21 2.23.7 Prescriber Post Code (CHP).......................................................................................................................................................21 2.23.8 Prescriber Telephone No (CHP) .................................................................................................................................................21 2.23.9 Prescriber Fax No (CHP)............................................................................................................................................................21

2.24 PRESCRIBER TYPE (CHP) ...........................................................................................................................................21 2.25 PRESCRIBER SUB-TYPE (CHP) ..................................................................................................................................22 2.26 PRESCRIBER LEVEL (CHP).........................................................................................................................................22

Miscellaneous........................................................................................................................................................ 23 2.27 DATE FROM...................................................................................................................................................................23 2.28 DATE TO ........................................................................................................................................................................23 2.29 DATE PRESCRIBER VALID FROM ..............................................................................................................................23 2.30 DATE PRESCRIBER VALID TO....................................................................................................................................23

3.0 INTRODUCTION TO DISPENSER DETAILS CLASS ..................................................................................... 24 NHS Board Dispenser Hierarchy ......................................................................................................................... 25

3.1 DISPENSER HEALTH BOARD NAME............................................................................................................................25 3.2 DISPENSER SUB HB NAME...........................................................................................................................................25 3.3 DISPENSER REFERENCE ..............................................................................................................................................25 3.4 DISPENSER NAME..........................................................................................................................................................25

3.4.1 Dispenser Address Line 1.............................................................................................................................................................25 3.4.2 Dispenser Address Line 2.............................................................................................................................................................25 3.4.3 Dispenser Address Line 3.............................................................................................................................................................25 3.4.4 Dispenser Address Line 4.............................................................................................................................................................25 3.4.5 Dispenser Post Code....................................................................................................................................................................25 3.4.6 Dispenser Telephone No ..............................................................................................................................................................25 3.4.7 Dispenser Fax No .........................................................................................................................................................................25

3.5 DISPENSER ALTERNATIVE NAME ...............................................................................................................................25 3.6 DISPENSER SUBTYPE ...................................................................................................................................................25 3.7 DISPENSING DOCTOR PAYMENT CLASS ...................................................................................................................25 3.8 PREMISES CODE ............................................................................................................................................................26

CHP Dispenser Hierarchy..................................................................................................................................... 27 3.9 DISPENSER CHP NAME .................................................................................................................................................27 3.10 DISPENSER SUB CHP NAME ......................................................................................................................................27 3.11 DISPENSER REFERENCE (CHP).................................................................................................................................27



3.12 DISPENSER NAME (CHP).............................................................................................................................................27 3.12.1 Dispenser Address Line 1 (CHP)................................................................................................................................................27 3.12.2 Dispenser Address Line 2 (CHP)................................................................................................................................................27 3.12.3 Dispenser Address Line 3 (CHP)................................................................................................................................................27 3.12.4 Dispenser Address Line 4 (CHP)................................................................................................................................................27 3.12.5 Dispenser Post Code (CHP) .......................................................................................................................................................27 3.12.6 Dispenser Telephone No (CHP) .................................................................................................................................................27 3.12.7 Dispenser Fax No (CHP) ............................................................................................................................................................27

3.13 DISPENSER ALTERNATIVE NAME (CHP) ..................................................................................................................27 3.14 DISPENSER SUBTYPE (CHP) ......................................................................................................................................27 3.15 DISP DOCTOR PAYMENT CLASS (CHP) ....................................................................................................................27 3.16 PREMISES CODE (CHP) ...............................................................................................................................................27

Miscellaneous Dispenser ..................................................................................................................................... 28 3.17 DATE FROM...................................................................................................................................................................28 3.18 DATE TO ........................................................................................................................................................................28 3.19 DATE DISPENSER VALID FROM.................................................................................................................................28 3.20 DATE DISPENSER VALID TO ......................................................................................................................................28

4.0 INTRODUCTION TO THE TIME CLASS.......................................................................................................... 29 4.1 DATE AS MONTH YEAR .................................................................................................................................................29 4.2 FINANCIAL MONTH ........................................................................................................................................................29 4.3 FINANCIAL QUARTER....................................................................................................................................................29 4.4 FINANCIAL YEAR............................................................................................................................................................29 4.5 FINANCIAL YEAR/QUARTER.........................................................................................................................................29

Calendar Dates ...................................................................................................................................................... 29 4.6 CALENDAR DATE ...........................................................................................................................................................29 4.7 CALENDAR MONTH........................................................................................................................................................29 4.8 CALENDAR QUARTER ...................................................................................................................................................29 4.9 CALENDAR YEAR...........................................................................................................................................................29 4.10 CALENDAR YEAR/QUARTER ......................................................................................................................................30

PRE-DEFINED TIME CLASS FILTERS ................................................................................................................. 30 4.11 SELECT CALENDAR YEAR RANGE ...........................................................................................................................30 4.12 SELECT CALENDAR YEAR/QUARTER RANGE ........................................................................................................30 4.13 SELECT MONTH RANGE .............................................................................................................................................30 4.14 SELECT FINANCIAL YEAR RANGE ............................................................................................................................30 4.15 SELECT FINANCIAL YEAR/QUARTER RANGE .........................................................................................................31 4.16 LATEST MONTH............................................................................................................................................................31 4.17 LATEST THREE MONTH PERIOD................................................................................................................................31 4.18 LATEST YEAR ...............................................................................................................................................................31 4.19 LATEST FINANCIAL QUARTER...................................................................................................................................31 4.20 LATEST FINANCIAL YEAR ..........................................................................................................................................31

5.0 INTRODUCTION TO PRESCRIBABLE ITEMS CLASS .................................................................................. 32 5.1 APPROVED NAME ..........................................................................................................................................................32 5.2 PRESCRIBABLE ITEM NAME ........................................................................................................................................32 5.3 PRESCRIBABLE ITEM DESCRIPTION ..........................................................................................................................33 5.4 PRODUCT DESCRIPTION...............................................................................................................................................33 5.5 FORMULATION CODE ....................................................................................................................................................33 5.6 STRENGTH ......................................................................................................................................................................34 5.7 PACK ................................................................................................................................................................................34 5.8 MANUFACTURER ...........................................................................................................................................................34 5.9 DAILY DOSE ....................................................................................................................................................................34 5.10 DAILY DOSE CONVERSION.........................................................................................................................................34 5.11 DRUG CLASSIFICATION ..............................................................................................................................................35 5.12 NON DRUG CATEGORY ...............................................................................................................................................35 5.13 CONTROLLED DRUG SCHEDULE ..............................................................................................................................35 5.14 eVADIS PRODUCT ........................................................................................................................................................36 5.15 STOCK ORDER CODE ..................................................................................................................................................36 5.16 OXYGEN FLAG..............................................................................................................................................................37 5.17 CONTRACEPTIVE FLAG ..............................................................................................................................................37 5.18 DATE FROM...................................................................................................................................................................37



5.19 DATE TO ........................................................................................................................................................................37 BNF (British National Formulary) ........................................................................................................................ 38

5.20 CHAPTER BNF CODE...................................................................................................................................................38 5.21 CHAPTER BNF DESCRIPTION ....................................................................................................................................38 5.22 CHAPTER BNF ..............................................................................................................................................................38 5.23 SECTION BNF CODE ....................................................................................................................................................38 5.24 SECTION BNF DESCRIPTION ......................................................................................................................................38 5.25 SECTION BNF................................................................................................................................................................38 5.26 SUB-SECTION BNF CODE ...........................................................................................................................................38 5.27 SUB-SECTION BNF DESCRIPTION .............................................................................................................................39 5.28 SUB-SECTION BNF.......................................................................................................................................................39 5.29 PARAGRAPH BNF CODE .............................................................................................................................................39 5.30 PARAGRAPH BNF DESCRIPTION...............................................................................................................................39 5.31 PARAGRAPH BNF ........................................................................................................................................................39 5.32 ROOT DRUG BNF CODE ..............................................................................................................................................39 5.33 ROOT DRUG BNF DESCRIPTION................................................................................................................................39 5.34 ROOT DRUG BNF..........................................................................................................................................................39 5.35 ITEM BNF CODE............................................................................................................................................................39 5.36 ITEM BNF DESCRIPTION .............................................................................................................................................40 5.37 ITEM BNF .......................................................................................................................................................................40

6.0 INTRODUCTION TO FORMS CLASS.............................................................................................................. 41 6.1 FORM TYPE .....................................................................................................................................................................41 6.2 FORM TYPE DESCRIPTION ...........................................................................................................................................42 6.3 CLASS OF PREPARATION (DISPENSED) ....................................................................................................................42 6.4 CLASS OF PREPARATION (PAID) ................................................................................................................................42 6.5 EXEMPTION CODE .........................................................................................................................................................43

7.0 INTRODUCTION TO PRESCRIPTION COST ALLOCATIONS CLASS.......................................................... 44 7.1 TOTAL PRESCRIPTION ITEMS......................................................................................................................................44 7.2 ALLOCATION GIC ...........................................................................................................................................................44 7.3 EXPENDITURE GIC .........................................................................................................................................................44

8.0 INTRODUCTION TO DISPENSED FACTS CLASS......................................................................................... 45 8.1 DEFINED DAILY DOSES (DDDS) ...................................................................................................................................45

8.1.1. DDDs (Dispensed Current)........................................................................................................................................................ 45 8.1.2. DDDs (Dispensed Historic) ....................................................................................................................................................... 45

8.2 NO OF ITEMS (DISPENSED) ..........................................................................................................................................46 8.3 GIC (DISPENSED) ...........................................................................................................................................................46 8.4 QUANTITY (DISPENSED) ...............................................................................................................................................46

9.0 INTRODUCTION TO PAID FACTS CLASS..................................................................................................... 47 9.1 DEFINED DAILY DOSES (DDDS) ...................................................................................................................................47

9.1.1. DDDs (Paid Current) .................................................................................................................................................................. 47 9.1.2. DDDs (Paid Historic).................................................................................................................................................................. 47

9.2 NO OF ITEMS (PAID).......................................................................................................................................................48 9.3 GIC (PAID)........................................................................................................................................................................48 9.4 QUANTITY (PAID)............................................................................................................................................................48

10.0 INTRODUCTION TO DERIVED FACTS CLASS............................................................................................ 49 10.1 % GENERIC PRESCRIBED...........................................................................................................................................49 10.2 BUDGET PERFORMANCE (MONETARY) ...................................................................................................................49 10.3 BUDGET PERFORMANCE (%) .....................................................................................................................................49 10.4 COST (GIC) / DDD .........................................................................................................................................................50 10.5 COST (GIC) / ITEM.........................................................................................................................................................50 10.6 COST (GIC) / PATIENT..................................................................................................................................................50 10.7 COST (GIC) / 1000 PATIENTS ......................................................................................................................................50 10.8 COST (GIC) / 1000 WEIGHTED PATIENTS..................................................................................................................50 10.9 DDDS / ITEM ..................................................................................................................................................................50 10.10 DDDs / PATIENT..........................................................................................................................................................51 10.11 DDDs / 1000 PATIENTS ..............................................................................................................................................51 10.12 DDDs / 1000 WEIGHTED PATIENTS..........................................................................................................................51 10.13 ITEMS / PATIENT.........................................................................................................................................................51



10.14 ITEMS / 1000 PATIENTS .............................................................................................................................................51 10.15 ITEMS / 1000 WEIGHTED PATIENTS.........................................................................................................................52 10.16 QUANTITY / ITEM ........................................................................................................................................................52 10.17 QUANTITY / PATIENT .................................................................................................................................................52 10.18 QUANTITY / 1000 PATIENTS......................................................................................................................................52 10.19 QUANTITY / 1000 WEIGHTED PATIENTS .................................................................................................................52

Paid Derived Facts ................................................................................................................................................ 53 10.20 % GENERIC PRESCRIBED (PAID).............................................................................................................................53 10.21 DDDs / ITEM (PAID).....................................................................................................................................................53 10.22 DDDs / PATIENT (PAID)..............................................................................................................................................53 10.23 DDDs / 1000 PATIENTS (PAID) ..................................................................................................................................53 10.24 DDDs / 1000 WGT PATIENTS (PAID).........................................................................................................................53 10.25 ITEMS / PATIENT (PAID) ............................................................................................................................................54 10.26 ITEMS / 1000 PATIENTS (PAID) .................................................................................................................................54 10.27 ITEMS / 1000 WGT PATIENTS (PAID)........................................................................................................................54 10.28 QUANTITY / ITEM (PAID) ............................................................................................................................................54 10.29 QUANTITY / PATIENT (PAID) .....................................................................................................................................55 10.30 QUANTITY / 1000 PATIENTS (PAID)..........................................................................................................................55 10.31 QUANTITY / 1000 WGT PATIENTS (PAID) ................................................................................................................55

11.0 INTRODUCTION TO LIST SIZES CLASS ..................................................................................................... 56 11.1 LIST SIZE .......................................................................................................................................................................56 11.2 LIST SIZE 65 PLUS........................................................................................................................................................56 11.3 LIST SIZE UP TO 64 ......................................................................................................................................................56 11.4 WEIGHTED LIST SIZE...................................................................................................................................................57

11.4.1. Scotland Weighted List Size ................................................................................................................................................... 57 11.4.2. HB Weighted List Size ............................................................................................................................................................. 57 11.4.3. CHP Weighted List Size........................................................................................................................................................... 57

Appendix A – Additional Information on Weighted List Sizes.......................................................................... 58 Appendix B – Additional Information on DDDs.................................................................................................. 62 Appendix C – General Rules Applied to Derived Facts ..................................................................................... 64 Appendix D – Dispenser Reference..................................................................................................................... 66 Appendix E – Quantity.......................................................................................................................................... 67



Introduction PRISMS is a software package to allow NHS staff access to prescription data. The PRISMS database is based on the Prescribing Information System (PIS), which is a detailed database of all NHS prescriptions dispensed in the community in Scotland. The information is supplied by Practitioner Services Division (PSD) who is responsible for the processing and pricing of all prescriptions dispensed in Scotland. DCVP (Data Capture Validation and Pricing) is the system used by PSD for this purpose, and a monthly feed takes place between DCVP and PIS. These data are augmented with information on prescriptions written in Scotland that were dispensed elsewhere in the United Kingdom. All these prescriptions are dispensed by community pharmacies, dispensing doctors and a small number of specialist appliance suppliers. GPs write the majority of these prescriptions, with the remainder written mainly by non-medical prescribers including nurses, dentists and pharmacists. Additional tables in the PIS data warehouse permit the monthly payment data from the DCVP to be augmented, for the purposes of analysis and presentation, with data on practices (e.g. list size), organisational structures (e.g. practices within Community Health Partnerships (CHPs) and NHS Boards), prescribable items (e.g. manufacturer, formulation code, strength). This additional information comes from eVADIS (eVAluated Drug Information System) The volumes of data involved in prescribing are enormous. For efficiency purposes, therefore, a number of aggregate tables have also been produced containing summary statistics for ease and speed of reference.

1.1 MANUAL CONTENT

The PRISMS Data Manual is designed to be a concise and user-friendly guide to the definition, interpretation and coding of key data items found in the PRISMS WebIntelligence Universe. More information on the use of the data items when building queries can be found in the Support & Help section of the PRISMS website http://www.prismsweb.scot.nhs.uk/. It is organised into chapters, each representing a ‘class’ in the PRISMS universe. Key data items in each class appear together with a definition for the item, any coding schemes used, and advice on interpretation (where relevant).

1.2 TERMINOLOGY

1.2.1 Universe

A universe is a representation of the information available in a database. It is the entire collection of objects and classes that are available to the user for defining their own reports.

http://www.prismsweb.scot.nhs.uk/�



1.2.2 Objects

An object is an element in the universe and relates to data in a database. You use objects to retrieve data for your reports. There are four types of object in the PRISMS Universe:

1.2.3 Dimension Objects

They are denoted by a small blue cube, as shown below:

It is very likely that the queries you build/create will be based around dimension objects - they provide the basis for analysis in a report. Examples of dimension objects are Practice Name, Approved Name, and Chapter BNF Description.

1.2.4 Detail Objects

A detail object is always associated with one dimension object and is denoted by a green pyramid, as shown below:

It provides additional information about the dimension object. Continuing with the dimension object example used, a detail object associated with Practice Name would be Practice Address Line 1.

1.2.5 Measure Objects

A purple sphere, as shown below, denotes a measure object:

A measure object always contains numeric data. The value a numeric object returns varies depending on the dimension and detail object(s) with which it is used. An example best illustrates this: If you include Practice Name as the dimension object, and No of Items (Dispensed) as the measure object in a query, this would return the No of Items (Dispensed) for each practice included in your query. However if you include Health Board Name as the dimension object and No of Items (Dispensed) as the measure object in a query, this would return the No of Items (Dispensed) for each NHS Board included in your query.

1.2.6 Filter Objects

For many of the ad-hoc queries that a user creates, the user will only be interested in a small section of the data that could be returned. For example, a user may wish to find the total quantity of drugs dispensed but only for a specific BNF chapter. A filter is used to limit the results of a query to the section of data that the user is interested in, in this case, a specific BNF chapter. The user can use any dimension object such as Practice Reference or Section BNF Code as a filter. PRISMS also provides a number of pre-defined filters for items that are likely to be most frequently used. Pre-defined filters are denoted by a small yellow funnel:



1.3 CLASSES AND SUBCLASSESS

The purpose of classes is to provide logical groupings of data objects. When you create queries on the universe, classes help you to find the objects that represent the information that you want to use in a query. A particular class can consist of a number of sub-classes. In PRISMS, an example of a class is Organisation Details, which includes the sub-classes NHS Board Hierarchy and CHP Hierarchy.



2.0 Introduction to Organisation Details Class Organisational Change There are two subclasses in the Organisation Details Class, ‘NHS Board Hierarchy’ and ‘CHP Hierarchy’. NHS Board and Sub Board do not appear in the same Hierarchy as CHP and Sub CHP. This is because a CHP does not always reside wholly within the boundaries of an NHS Board. There may be instances where you wish to compare a CHP to an NHS Board. If a CHP resides wholly within the boundaries of an NHS Board, comparison is possible. If a CHP straddles two or more NHS Boards, direct comparison is inadvisable. All practices must belong to an NHS Board and a CHP; hence, practice/prescriber is an integral part of both hierarchies. There are sets of objects relating to practice and prescriber data in both the NHS Board Hierarchy and the CHP Hierarchy. Please note that objects from the NHS Board Hierarchy are not compatible with objects from the CHP Hierarchy. Sub Health Board objects have been introduced in response to the dissolution of Argyll & Clyde. These objects allow reporting on the old Health Board areas of Greater Glasgow, Highland and Argyll & Clyde, as they were constituted prior to Argyll & Clyde’s dissolution. Prescribers are usually General Medical Practitioners (commonly known as GPs). However nurses (Practice Nurses, Community Nurses, District Nurses etc), hospitals or hospital departments, dentists and pharmacists may also prescribe. Prescriber Type distinguishes between the roles of individual prescribers (e.g. GP, Nurse, Dentist). Prescriber Sub-Type distinguishes between the different roles for each type of prescriber e.g. within GPs will distinguish between Senior Partner and Retainee, within nurses will distinguish District Nurse, Health Visitor etc. For more detail see the individual object descriptions. Details are stored about:

Who the prescriber is What type of prescriber they are (above paragraph refers) When they began being allowed to prescribe When they ceased being allowed to prescribe Information about the geographical and organisational structure they work under (e.g. which NHS Board,

CHP) Dental data Information about dental prescribing is available within PRISMS. To access dental data it is necessary to create an ad-hoc query that contains an object from the Prescriber or Prescriber (CHP) class. To identify whether the data relates to a dentist or other prescriber the object Prescriber Type must be used. For dentists, this object value is DEN. If your ad-hoc query does not include an object from the Prescriber or Prescriber (CHP) class, then dental data is excluded from the results. Dental information is excluded from all standard reports, except for C13 Dentist Prescriber SPA Level 2.



Organisational Details 2.1 Scotland ID Four character cipher, identifying Scotland. 2.2 Scotland Name This displays as Scotland and is used to facilitate the inclusion of Scotland as a single entity.

NHS Board Hierarchy 2.3 HEALTH BOARD REFERENCE Single-character cipher, identifying an NHS Board. 2.4 HEALTH BOARD NAME The name of the NHS Board. This identifies the Board area of the prescriber. You will notice that there is a Dummy Scotland Health Board and an Unknown Health Board, for more information on their role please see note 2 in Section 2.9. There is also an England Health Board, note 3 in Section 2.9 gives further information on this. Detail objects for reporting the NHS Board address can be found under the Health Board Name:

2.4.1 Health Board Address Line 1




2.4.5 Health Board Post Code

2.4.6 Health Board Telephone No

2.4.7 Health Board Fax No

Note: These address detail objects cannot be used in conjunction in a single query with any measures e.g. GIC (Dispensed), Quantity (Paid). 2.5 SUB HEALTH BOARD REFERENCE Either a single character, or two-character, cipher that identifies a Sub Board. Where a Sub Board does not exist a dummy Sub Board has been created and given the NHS Board Reference. Where this has happened, the data for the Sub Board and the NHS Board will be identical. 2.6 SUB HEALTH BOARD NAME The name of the Sub Board. Where a Sub Board does not exist a dummy Sub Board has been created and given the NHS Board Name. Where this has happened, the data for the Sub Board and the NHS Board will be identical. Detail objects for reporting the Sub Board address can be found under the Sub Health Board Name:



2.6.1 Sub HB Address Line 1




2.6.5 Sub HB Post Code

2.6.6 Sub HB Telephone No

2.6.7 Sub HB Fax No

Note: These address detail objects cannot be used in conjunction in a single query with any measures e.g. GIC (Dispensed), Quantity (Paid). 2.7 PRACTICE REFERENCE The content of this field depends on the value of the fields Prescriber Level and Prescriber Type as follows:

For Prescriber Level of NHS Boards, CHPs and Sub CHPs it is set to null For Prescriber Level of dentist the field contains Dental Practice code For all other cases, the field contains GP Practice code

GP Practice Code The identifying code for a General Practice (a General Practice is an organisation of one or more general practitioners who provide general medical services to the population). The term GP Practice covers both partnerships and single-handed practices. Each GP Practice in Scotland is identified by a unique GP Practice Code (also known as GPPC). The GPPC is a five-digit numerical code, which has been developed for the whole of Scotland. It comprises a four-digit identifying code, plus a check-digit. Please note that GP Practice Codes in England are six-digits long (and alpha-numeric). Dental Practice code For historical reasons, dental practice code is the same as dentist prescriber code. There are around 100 instances where a dental practice code is the same as a GP practice code. One consequence of this is that if you were to build a query looking at prescribing of individual prescribers in a practice, it is possible that this would include dental prescribing. This happens where a dental practice code is the same as a GP practice code. To exclude the dental prescribing you need to add one of the following filters to your query – Prescriber Type Not Equal to DEN or Form Type Not Equal to GP14. 2.8 PRACTICE NAME The full name of the responsible practice as detailed by the NHS Board. Note that this may not be as it is locally known. Detail objects for reporting the Practice address can be found under the Practice Name.



2.8.1 Practice Address Line 1




2.8.5 Practice Post Code

2.8.6 Practice Telephone No

2.8.7 Practice Fax No

Note: These address detail objects cannot be used in conjunction in a single query with any measures e.g. GIC (Dispensed), Quantity (Paid). 2.9 PRESCRIBER REFERENCE This is the reference code for the prescriber. A number of different coding schemes exist, depending upon the Prescriber Type (please note that Prescriber Reference may not be unique across Prescriber Types):

GP 5-digit numeric code. Appointments are approved by Scottish Medical Practices Committee. If a GP moves from one NHS Board area to another, s/he is given a new code from the appropriate range.

Nurse 5-digit alphabetic code. Characters 2-3 are unique for each code set up (chosen sequentially). Characters 4-5 are practice specific (nurses from the same practice have the same last two characters). A nurse can be a member of several practices (and will have a separate code for each). Codes are allocated by the eVADIS team. Nurses can have Sub-Types (e.g. CN=Community Nurse).

Dentist 5-digit numeric code. Codes are allocated by the dental team in Practitioner Services (MIDAS) database. Dentists may contract to many NHS Boards. A separate unique prescriber code will be allocated for every such contract.

Hospital 5-digit alpha-numeric code. Codes are allocated by the eVADIS team. Hospital prescriber codes are allocated to hospital departments, or a single code for the hospital.

Pharmacist 6-digit alphanumeric code. Digits 1-4 are the first 4 digits of the practice code. Characters 5-6 alpha/numeric. Introduced in 2003 to cater for supplementary prescribers (i.e. community pharmacists who are allowed to prescribe). The code identifies the individual pharmacist, not the pharmacy.



Note: A ‘dummy’ range of GP Principal numbers is 9900-9999 If a GP works in more than one practice at a time, then he/she should have a reference number for each practice Doctors Retainers Scheme The Doctors Retainers Scheme is a scheme that enables doctors to continue working at a time when they are unable to make a greater commitment to general practice (usually due to family commitments). They are able to work up to a total of 4 sessions (minimum of 1) per week. A five-year limit usually applies to membership of the scheme. There will usually be only one retainee in any approved practice. Similarly, normally, a retainee will work in one practice (though both constraints may be relaxed in exceptional circumstances). Retainees must retain registration with the GMC, and maintain membership of a medical defence organisation. Dummy Codes

Hospital Either a single character cipher or an alphanumeric code. Example: S, S1, S2 all “Dummy Lothian Hospital” Prescribing for this cipher is associated with the NHS Board in the name, relevant Sub Board, and the dummy Sub CHP and CHP for the NHS Board.

Dentist A single character code, followed by a number, followed by 999 Example: Z1999 “Dummy Dentist (Scotland)” for Shetland Prescribing for this cipher is associated with a ‘Dummy Dentist’ practice, the NHS Board, relevant Sub Board, and the dummy Sub CHP and CHP for the NHS Board.

Practice 999, followed by a single character code, followed by a number. Example: 999A1 “Dr G P Dummy” for Ayrshire & Arran Prescribing for this cipher is associated with a Dummy Practice, the NHS Board, relevant Sub NHS Board, and the dummy Sub CHP and CHP for the NHS Board. Please also refer to the paragraph in this section on Pharmacist.

GP 999, followed by a single character code, followed by a number. Example: 999A1 “Dr G P Dummy” for Ayrshire & Arran. Prescribing for this cipher is associated with a Dummy Practice, the NHS Board, relevant Sub NHS Board, and the dummy Sub CHP and CHP for the NHS Board.

Nurse A single character code repeated five times, or four times followed by a number. Example: SSSSS, SSSS1, SSSS2 all “Dummy” for Lothian. Prescribing for this cipher is associated with a Dummy



Practice, the NHS Board, relevant Sub NHS Board, and the dummy Sub CHP and CHP for the NHS Board.

Pharmacist Either 999, followed by NHS Board cipher a single character code, followed by a number; or 99999, followed by a single character code, followed by a number. Examples: 1) 999B1 and 99999B1 both “Dummy” for Borders. Prescribing for this cipher is associated with a Dummy Practice, the NHS Board, relevant Sub NHS Board, and the dummy Sub CHP and CHP for the NHS Board 2) 999A5 is the “dummy” code for the prescriptions written under the Public Health Service element of the new community pharmacy contract for NHS Ayrshire & Arran. Note 99999A5 is not used.

Notes

1. For prescribing dispensed in Scotland where the prescriber cannot be established, the prescribing is allocated to dummy prescriber codes. If it is possible to establish the NHS Board the prescriber comes from (e.g. sufficient of the prescriber code is legible to do this) the dummy GP for the NHS Board is allocated. If the prescriber code is totally illegible, the NHS Board of the dispenser is allocated as the dummy.

2. If neither the prescriber nor the dispenser can be established (as is often the case, for example, for prescriptions prescribed in Scotland and dispensed in England), the prescribing is not allocated to any specific NHS Board and the Dummy Scotland NHS Board cipher is used. Before Data Capture Validation and Pricing was introduced these prescriptions were allocated to the ‘Unknown’ NHS Board.

3. Prescriptions which were prescribed in England and dispensed in Scotland are allocated to the England NHS Board.

2.10 PROFESSIONAL REG NO If present, this field contains one of two types of code, depending on the prescriber type. If the prescriber is a GP, this field contains the GMC (General Medical Council) registration number, allocated to each doctor. It is a 7-digit number, which the doctor retains throughout his/her career. If the prescriber is a nurse, this field contains the Nursing & Midwifery Council (NMC) PIN. To work in the UK, all nurses, midwives and health visitors must register with the NMC. Practitioners must renew their registration every three years. The NMC PIN number is the nursing registration for each nurse. It is 8-characters long, alphanumeric, and the 1st two digits represent the year of registration. At present, GDC (General Dental Council) numbers are not recorded for prescribing dentists. 2.11 PRESCRIBER NAME The full name of the responsible prescriber output in the format Surname, Title and Initials. Detail objects for reporting the prescriber address can be found under the Prescriber Name.



2.11.1 First Forename

2.11.2 Second Forename

2.11.3 Prescriber Address Line 1




2.11.7 Prescriber Post Code

2.11.8 Prescriber Telephone No

2.11.9 Prescriber Fax No

Note: These address detail objects cannot be used in conjunction in a single query with any measures e.g. GIC (Dispensed), Quantity (Paid). 2.12 PRESCRIBER TYPE Indicates the type of prescriber. This is the ‘role type’ associated with an individual or organisation: DEN Dentist NUR Nurse GP General Practitioner GPPRA GP Practice* HOSP Hospital CP Community Pharmacist PHM Pharmacist PP Private Prescriber * It is unlikely that any prescribing would be associated with these types. These Prescriber Types would be most commonly used to identify organisations in a query. 2.13 PRESCRIBER SUB-TYPE A division of Prescriber Type. It further describes the role an individual may have. Not all Prescriber Types have Sub-Types. 3D Triple Duty Nurse ASI Assistant ASO Associate CN Community Nurse DN District Nurse EN Extended Nurse EPN Extended Nurse PN FOR Foreign HV Health Visitor INS Instructor PHY Physiotherapist PIP Pharmacist Independent Prescriber PN Practice Nurse POD Podiatrist PP Private Prescriber REG Registrar RET Retainee SP Senior Partner



SPI Senior Partner Instructor SUP Supplementary Nurse 2.14 PRESCRIBER LEVEL Prescriber Level Type denotes the level of the organisation. HB NHS Board SHB Sub Board TRUST NHS Trust CHP Community Health Partnership SCHP Sub Community Health Partnership PRAC General Practice or Dental Practice PRESC Prescriber (individual person)



CHP Hierarchy 2.15 CHP Reference An alphanumeric code that identifies the CHP. 2.16 CHP NAME The full name of the responsible CHP. Detail objects for reporting the CHP address can be found under the CHP Name:

2.16.1 CHP Address Line 1 2.16.2 CHP Address Line 2 2.16.3 CHP Address Line 3 2.16.4 CHP Address Line 4 2.16.5 CHP Post Code 2.16.6 CHP Telephone No 2.16.7 CHP Fax No

Note: These address detail objects cannot be used in conjunction in a single query with any measures e.g. GIC (Dispensed), Quantity (Paid). 2.17 Sub CHP REFERENCE An alphanumeric code that identifies the Sub CHP. The first part of the identifier will be the CHP Reference, this will be followed by a sequential number. Where a Sub CHP does not exist a dummy Sub CHP has been created and given the CHP Reference. Where this has happened, the data for the Sub CHP and the CHP will be identical. A Sub CHP may also be referred to as a Locality or a Local Health Partnership (LHP). Note: This organisation level has been added for Boards who have requested that information can be broken down at a managerial level below CHP. 2.18 Sub CHP NAME The full name of the responsible Sub CHP. Where a Sub CHP does not exist a dummy Sub CHP has been created and given the CHP Name. Where this has happened, the data for the Sub CHP and the CHP will be identical. Detail objects for reporting the Sub CHP address can be found under the Sub CHP Name:

2.18.1 Sub CHP Address Line 1




2.18.5 Sub CHP Post Code

2.18.6 Sub CHP Telephone No

2.18.7 Sub CHP Fax No

Note: These address detail objects cannot be used in conjunction in a single query with any measures e.g. GIC (Dispensed), Quantity (Paid).



The following Practice and Prescriber objects in the CHP Hierarchy are equivalent to the same objects in the NHS Board Hierarchy. If reporting at Practice or Prescriber level the objects from either Hierarchy will return the same data. For queries where you need to combine Practice and/or Prescriber objects with NHS Board objects you will need to use the objects from the subclass ‘NHS Board Hierarchy’. Similarly, when combining these objects with CHP objects you must use the objects from the ‘CHP Hierarchy’. If you attempt to combine objects from both hierarchies in the same query, an error will occur. For full definitions of the objects, please see the relevant sections above. 2.19 PRACTICE REFERENCE (CHP) See Section 2.7 for a full definition. 2.20 PRACTICE NAME (CHP)

2.20.1 Practice Address Line 1 (CHP)




2.20.5 Practice Post Code (CHP)

2.20.6 Practice Telephone No (CHP)

2.20.7 Practice Fax No (CHP)

Note: These address detail objects cannot be used in conjunction in a single query with any measures e.g. GIC (Dispensed), Quantity (Paid). See Section 2.8 for a full definition. 2.21 PRESCRIBER REFERENCE (CHP) See Section 2.9 for a full definition. 2.22 PROFESSIONAL REG No (CHP) See Section 2.10 for a full definition. 2.23 PRESCRIBER NAME (CHP)

2.23.1 First Forename (CHP)

2.23.2 Second Forename (CHP)

2.23.3 Prescriber Address Line 1 (CHP)




2.23.7 Prescriber Post Code (CHP)

2.23.8 Prescriber Telephone No (CHP)

2.23.9 Prescriber Fax No (CHP)

Note: These address detail objects cannot be used in conjunction in a single query with any measures e.g. GIC (Dispensed), Quantity (Paid). See Section 2.11 for a full definition. 2.24 PRESCRIBER TYPE (CHP)



See Section 2.12 for a full definition. 2.25 PRESCRIBER SUB-TYPE (CHP) See Section 2.13 for a full definition. 2.26 PRESCRIBER LEVEL (CHP) See Section 2.14 for a full definition.



Miscellaneous This subclass contains objects that report list size data; and objects that report the dates for which organisations and prescribers are valid. 2.27 DATE FROM 2.28 DATE TO These date objects provide the user with the facility to report on historical changes to an organisation such as a name change or list size change. Date From is the date on which the details became valid and Date To is the date on which the details ceased to be valid. If the details are current, then Date To will be null. 2.29 DATE PRESCRIBER VALID FROM Date the prescriber began prescribing. Note: This is based on prescriber code (e.g. GP Ref No) – the individual may have been prescribing previously under a different code. 2.30 DATE PRESCRIBER VALID TO Date the prescriber ceased to prescribe. Note: This is based on prescriber code (e.g. GP Ref No) – the individual may commence prescribing under a different code.



3.0 INTRODUCTION TO DISPENSER DETAILS CLASS Usually dispensers will be Community Pharmacists. However, they may also be dispensing doctors, or appliance suppliers. Details are stored about:

Who the dispenser (sometimes known as the contractor) is What type of dispenser they are (above paragraph refers) When they began being allowed to dispense When they ceased being allowed to dispense What the trading name is (which may not be the same as the contractor name)

PRISMS is a prescribing, rather than a dispensing, information system. A user’s security level allows them to view data for prescribing and dispensing that originated within their organisation. However, a dispenser can dispense items that were written in any Board area. Therefore the results that a PRISMS user can obtain for a dispenser-based query will be limited to those dispensings where the prescription was written in that user’s organisation. The actual total values for a particular dispenser may be higher than those that can be obtained by the user. There are two subclasses in the Dispenser Details Class, ‘NHS Board Dispenser Hierarchy’ and ‘CHP Dispenser Hierarchy’. These subclasses contain ‘NHS Board’ and ‘CHP’ versions of the same Dispenser objects. This is because a CHP does not always reside wholly within the boundaries of an NHS Board. If you wish to combine objects from the Dispenser Class and objects from the Organisation Details class it is important that the correct range of objects are selected:

For queries that use organisation objects from the subclass ‘NHS Board Hierarchy’ use objects from the ‘NHS Board Dispenser Hierarchy’ class to report on dispenser information.

For queries that use organisation objects from the subclass ‘CHP Hierarchy’ use objects from the ‘CHP Dispenser Hierarchy’ class to report on dispenser information.

Queries that attempt to combine objects from the two hierarchies will not run, an error message will be displayed. Note: dispenser objects are only compatible with certain measures. Please check the measure description to determine which measures the Dispenser objects can be combined with. Please note that they are not compatible with any Derived Fact objects.



NHS Board Dispenser Hierarchy 3.1 DISPENSER HEALTH BOARD NAME The name of the NHS Board that the dispenser is located in. 3.2 DISPENSER SUB HB NAME The name of the Sub Board that the dispenser is located in. 3.3 DISPENSER REFERENCE This is the reference code for the dispenser. It is allocated by PSD Pharmacy. Please see Appendix D to see the 4-digit code, and how the separate ranges are allocated, depending upon the NHS Board in which the dispenser resides. 3.4 DISPENSER NAME The name of the dispenser (contractor).

3.4.1 Dispenser Address Line 1




3.4.5 Dispenser Post Code

3.4.6 Dispenser Telephone No

3.4.7 Dispenser Fax No

Note: These address detail objects cannot be used in conjunction in a single query with any measures e.g. GIC (Dispensed), Quantity (Paid). 3.5 DISPENSER ALTERNATIVE NAME The alternative name used by the dispenser (contractor) if different from the dispenser name. For example, the trading name. 3.6 DISPENSER SUBTYPE Indicates the type of dispenser. CP Community Pharmacist AS Appliance Supplier DD Dispensing Doctor Null English Contractor 3.7 DISPENSING DOCTOR PAYMENT CLASS A type of payment for dispensing doctors only: Class 1 Discount scale applies Class 2 No discount no special payment Class 3 Special payment rate of 5% Class 4 Special payment rate of10% Class 5 Special payment rate of 15%



Class 6 Special payment rate of 20% Note: ‘Class 0’ is given to all other dispensers who are not dispensing doctors. 3.8 PREMISES CODE This code is unique to the premises, and is used when a shop is transferred over to a new contractor, or there is a change of ownership (i.e. it can be used to track pharmacies which have changed hands).



CHP Dispenser Hierarchy 3.9 DISPENSER CHP NAME The name of the CHP that the dispenser is located in. 3.10 DISPENSER SUB CHP NAME The name of the Sub CHP that the dispenser is located in. 3.11 DISPENSER REFERENCE (CHP) See Section 3.3 for a full definition. 3.12 DISPENSER NAME (CHP) See Section 3.4 for a full definition.

3.12.1 Dispenser Address Line 1 (CHP)




3.12.5 Dispenser Post Code (CHP)

3.12.6 Dispenser Telephone No (CHP)

3.12.7 Dispenser Fax No (CHP)

Note: These address detail objects cannot be used in conjunction in a single query with any measures e.g. GIC (Dispensed), Quantity (Paid). 3.13 DISPENSER ALTERNATIVE NAME (CHP) See Section 3.5 for a full definition. 3.14 DISPENSER SUBTYPE (CHP) See Section 3.6 for a full definition. 3.15 DISP DOCTOR PAYMENT CLASS (CHP) See Section 3.7 for a full definition. 3.16 PREMISES CODE (CHP) See Section 3.8 for a full definition.



Miscellaneous Dispenser 3.17 DATE FROM Date at which the current set of details became valid. Note: compare with ‘Date Dispenser Valid From’ which is the date the dispenser commenced dispensing. 3.18 DATE TO Date at which the current set of information became invalid. Note: compare with ‘Date Dispenser Valid To’, which is the date the dispenser ceased to dispense. 3.19 DATE DISPENSER VALID FROM Date the dispenser commenced dispensing. This is based on Dispenser Reference – a major relocation of premises could result in a new code being allocated. 3.20 DATE DISPENSER VALID TO Date the dispenser ceased to dispense. This is based on Dispenser Reference - a dispenser may continue to dispense under a new code if a major relocation has taken place.



4.0 INTRODUCTION TO THE TIME CLASS The Time class provides the user with a number of objects for reporting dispensing information over a variety of time periods. 4.1 DATE AS MONTH YEAR A date field in the format Mmm yyyy, i.e. Jan 2010. The field sorts in chronological order. 4.2 FINANCIAL MONTH Financial month number and abbreviated month name, 01 (Apr), 02 (May), 03 (Jun) etc. 4.3 FINANCIAL QUARTER Financial quarter is in the format, 1 (Apr-Jun), 2 (Jul-Sep), 3 (Oct-Dec) and 4 (Jan-Mar). 4.4 FINANCIAL YEAR Financial year is in format yyyy/yy, i.e. 2009/10. The current year is shown as YTD (yyyy/yy), i.e. YTD (2010/11). 4.5 FINANCIAL YEAR/QUARTER The financial year and quarter combined into a single object in the format yyyy/yy Qn, where yyyy/yy represents the financial year and n represents the financial quarter with values 1 through 4 inclusive. For example, the second quarter of financial year 2010 would be displayed as 2010/11 Q2, and represents the months July, August and September 2010. When sorting by this object the report results will be sorted in date order.

Calendar Dates 4.6 CALENDAR DATE This is a date field representing the first day of the month. 4.7 CALENDAR MONTH Calendar month number and abbreviated month name, 01 (Jan), 02 (Feb), 03 (Mar) etc. 4.8 CALENDAR QUARTER The Calendar quarter is in the format, 1 (Jan-Mar), 2 (Apr-Jun), 3 (Jul-Sep) and 4 (Oct-Dec). 4.9 CALENDAR YEAR The Calendar Year is in the format yyyy, i.e. 2009. The current year is shown as YTD (yyyy), i.e. YTD (2010).



4.10 CALENDAR YEAR/QUARTER The calendar year and quarter combined into a single object in the format yyyy Qn, where yyyy represents the calendar year and n represents the calendar quarter with values 1 through 4 inclusive. For example, the second quarter of calendar year 2010 would be displayed as 2010 Q2, and represents the months April, May and June 2010. When sorting by this object the report results will be sorted in date order.

PRE-DEFINED TIME CLASS FILTERS Pre-defined filters in the Time class can be split into two categories: those that prompt the user to enter their selection and those that are applied automatically. When creating an ad hoc query it makes sense to only use one of these predefined filters at a time – i.e. combining them would lead to incorrect results being returned.

Calendar Dates 4.11 SELECT CALENDAR YEAR RANGE The user will be prompted to select a calendar year range for which their ad-hoc query should be run, e.g. 2008 to 2010. Please note that the calendar year at the beginning of the data range will not be displayed in the list of values for selection if the data for this year is incomplete. For example, if the data range in PRISMS is May 05 to April 2010 the year 2005 will not be available for selection because the data for 2005 is not complete. 4.12 SELECT CALENDAR YEAR/QUARTER RANGE The user will be prompted to select a calendar year/quarter range for which their ad-hoc query should be run. The values displayed for selection will be in the format yyyy Qn, where yyyy represents the calendar year and n represents the calendar quarter with values 1 through 4 inclusive. For example: 2009 Q1 to 2009 Q4 represents the months of January 2009 to December 2009. Please note that the calendar quarters at the beginning and end of the data range will not be displayed in the list of values for selection if the data for these quarters is incomplete. For example, if the data range in PRISMS is May 2005 to April 2010, the calendar quarters 2005 Q2 and 2010 Q2 will not be available for selection because the data for these quarters is incomplete. 4.13 SELECT MONTH RANGE The user will be prompted to select a month range for which their ad-hoc query should be run, e.g. January 2010 to April 2010. 4.14 SELECT FINANCIAL YEAR RANGE The user will be prompted to select a financial year range for which their ad-hoc query should be run, e.g. 2009/10 to 2010/11. Please note that the financial year at the beginning of the data range will not be displayed in the list of values for selection if the data for this year is incomplete. For example, if the data range in PRISMS is May 2005 to April 2010 the year 2005/06 will not be available for selection because the data for 2005/06 is not complete.



4.15 SELECT FINANCIAL YEAR/QUARTER RANGE The user will be prompted to select a financial year/quarter range for which their ad-hoc query should be run. The values displayed for selection will be in the format yyyy/yy Qn, where yyyy/yy represents the financial year and n represents the financial quarter with values 1 through 4 inclusive. For example, 2009/10 Q1 to 2009/10 Q4. represents the months of April 2009 to March 2010. Please note that the financial quarters at the beginning and end of the data range will not be displayed in the list of values for selection if the data for these quarters is incomplete. For example, if the data range in PRISMS is May 2005 to April 2010, the financial quarters 2005/06 Q1 and 2010/11 Q1 will not be available for selection because the data for these quarters is incomplete. 4.16 LATEST MONTH An automatic filter that limits the results of the ad-hoc query to the latest month. The latest month is defined as “the month relating to the most recent data within PRISMS”. For example, the current month may be August 2010 but data within PRISMS may only exist up to April 2010. The latest month is therefore April 2010. 4.17 LATEST THREE MONTH PERIOD An automatic filter that limits the results of the ad-hoc query to the latest three-month period. The latest three-month period is defined as “the three months relating to the most recent data within PRISMS”. For example, the current month may be August 2010 but data within PRISMS may only exist up to April 2010. The latest three-month period is therefore February 2010 to April 2010. 4.18 LATEST YEAR An automatic filter that limits the results of the ad-hoc query to the latest year. The latest year is defined as “the year relating to the most recent 12 months of data within PRISMS”. For example, the current month may be August 2010 but data within PRISMS may only exist up to April 2010. The latest year is therefore May 2009 to April 2010. 4.19 LATEST FINANCIAL QUARTER An automatic filter that limits the results of the ad-hoc query to the latest financial quarter. The latest financial quarter is defined as “the most recent complete financial quarter relating to the current data within PRISMS”. For example, the current month may be August 2010 but data within PRISMS may only exist up to April 2010. The latest financial quarter is therefore January 2010 to March 2010. 4.20 LATEST FINANCIAL YEAR An automatic filter that limits the results of the ad-hoc query to the latest financial year. The latest financial year is defined as “the most recent complete financial year relating to the current data within PRISMS”. For example, the current month may be August 2010 but data within PRISMS may only exist up to April 2010. The latest financial year is therefore April 2009 to March 2010.



5.0 INTRODUCTION TO PRESCRIBABLE ITEMS CLASS A prescribable item is a drug/appliance that can be dispensed on prescription and is described by name, formulation, strength, item description and product description. Contents The Prescribable Items class contains details for all records in the drug Hierarchy, including a range of core information about the drug. It contains details of every:

Product pack - including details of the associated product, item and name Product - including details of the associated item and name Item - including details of the associated name Name

5.1 APPROVED NAME The 'Approved Name' as defined in the latest edition of the BNF (British National Formulary). Note: this may not be a single chemical substance. For example, within the BNF salbutamol base and salbutamol sulphate are grouped under the heading 'salbutamol' (BNF code 0301011R0). An approved (parent) name is the highest level of detail for a drug or appliance. It is a ‘heading’ name used to group related proprietary and generic names together. Its definition is dependent on the proprietary and generic names it is being used to group, and on their products. The following rules and principles apply:

Approved names for drugs generally reflect the monograph headings in the BNF. For appliances, the approved names tend to reflect the headings in the Scottish Drug Tariff (SDT).

The generic name is used as an approved name when all the products being grouped contain the same generic drug, in the same form (e.g. Nurofen would have an approved name of Ibuprofen).

The approved name may also be the name of the base salt, when all products contain the same generic drug, but as different salts (e.g. any product with morphine hydrochloride or morphine sulphate as the sole constituent would have the approved name of morphine).

For multi-ingredient products there is sometimes a rINN1 or BAN2 for the combination, and this would be used. However, often a multi-ingredient product will not have a rINN or BAN. In this instance, the ISD pharmacist will create a suitable approved name, reflecting the principal active ingredients (e.g. Nurofen Cold & Flu would have the approved name of Ibuprofen and Pseudoephedrene).

A general description reflecting the therapeutic use of the products listed under the approved name may be used (e.g. Emollients). This principle is used when all of the products would be expected to share the same interactions.

Additionally, if a name is listed in the current edition of the British Approved Names book it has a further classification of Official Approved. 5.2 PRESCRIBABLE ITEM NAME The name of the prescribable item (which can be generic or proprietary). A generic name is the rINN or BAN name for a drug. The generic name is the basic chemical components of a drug (e.g. Amoxicillin is sold as Amoxil and Amoxicillin, but the generic name would be Amoxicillin because it is the basic component of the drug). 1 Recommended International Non-proprietary Name 2 British Approved name



A proprietary name is any name that is marked with a trademark by the manufacturer (e.g. Nurofen is a proprietary name for Ibuprofen).

Pack: x60

Pack: x30

Price Price

Packx60

Pack: x30

Price Price

Pack: x60

Pack: x30

Price Price

Item: Amoxil caps 250mg

Item:Amoxicillin caps 250mg

Product: Amoxil caps 250mg SKB

Approved Name: Amoxicillin

Name (Proprietary): Amoxil

Name (Generic): Amoxicillin

Product: Amoxicillin caps 250mg Berk

Product: Amoxicillin caps 250mgAAH

5.3 PRESCRIBABLE ITEM DESCRIPTION The drug/appliance description. This is additional information not covered by the item’s name, formulation, or strength Examples 140 dose aqueous nasal 100 dose dry powder breath actuated 1 piece closed bag with dual filter transparent 5.4 PRODUCT DESCRIPTION The description of the product. This is additional information not covered by name, formulation and strength. See diagram in Section 5.2 that illustrates where product fits in the drug Hierarchy Examples 0.3ml syringe and needle 1-20 doses 750ml 10cm inlet tube small 1 stocking + 1 liner 5.5 FORMULATION CODE Specifies the formulation of an item, such as caps, tabs or syrup. Note that appliance items do not have a formulation. Further details of appliance items are held within item and product descriptions.



Examples SUSP Suspension PASTE Paste NEBUL Nebule CREAM Cream EMULS Emulsion GEL Gel 5.6 STRENGTH The numeric value and the unit of measure of the strength of the item. Note that appliance items and compound drugs do not have strength. Further details of these items are held within item and product description fields. Examples 75 MG 200 MCG/DOSE 400 MICROGRAMS 2MG/5ML 500 MCG/ML 2 G 5.7 PACK The size of the pack in which the product is supplied. Note that the pack may include sub-packs. 5.8 MANUFACTURER The name of the manufacturer of the drug or appliance product. 5.9 DAILY DOSE Defined Daily Dose (DDD) is a measure devised by WHO (the World Health Organisation) to help compare the use of different drugs, and is based on the assumed average maintenance dose per day for a drug when used for its main indication in adults. The DDD for substances is normally based on monotherapy (the use of a single drug to treat a particular disorder or disease), and a DDD will not normally be assigned for a product before it is approved and marketed in at least one country. This data item contains the WHO defined daily dose for an approved name. For further information on DDDs refer to Appendix B and the World Health Organisation collaborating centre ‘Drug Statistics Methodology’ website – http://www.whocc.no/atcddd/. 5.10 DAILY DOSE CONVERSION Defined Daily Dose (DDD) is a measure devised by WHO (the World Health Organisation) to help compare the use of different drugs, and is based on the assumed average maintenance dose per day for a drug when used for its main indication in adults.

http://www.whocc.no/atcddd/�



The DDD for substances is normally based on monotherapy (the use of a single drug to treat a particular disorder or disease), and a DDD will not normally be assigned for a product before it is approved and marketed in at least one country. This data item is the factor by which the quantity prescribed/dispensed should be divided, in order to produce a number of Defined Daily Doses (WHO). Updating DDD Conversion Factors Updates to existing DDDs are received monthly from the Prescription Pricing Division (PPD) and will be updated monthly for PRISMS users. PPD add new DDDs (i.e. for drugs which previously had none) every January so these should be available to PRISMS users in February. DDDs and alterations are published twice annually by the WHO. For more information on DDDs please refer to http://www.whocc.no/ddd/definition_and_general_considera/ For further information on DDDs refer to Appendix B. 5.11 DRUG CLASSIFICATION A code indicating whether drug is approved, generic or proprietary. A Approved G Generic P Proprietary See 5.1 (Approved Name) and 5.2 (Prescribable Item Name) for detail. 5.12 NON DRUG CATEGORY A flag indicating whether the non-drug item is an appliance or dressing. A Appliance D Dressing 5.13 CONTROLLED DRUG SCHEDULE Denotes the schedule for controlled drugs under the Misuse of Drugs Act 1971. Certain drugs have regulations regarding who may manufacture, prescribe, supply, administer and possess them. The schedule attributed to the drug denotes what these restrictions are. Note that schedule 2 drugs attract an additional fee.

0 Not controlled

1 Schedule 1 These products are the most tightly controlled. They are deemed to have no therapeutic relevance. Authority to possess is strictly limited to researchers holding an appropriate Home Office Licence. Information relating to Schedule 1 drugs does not appear on PRISMS, as they cannot be legally prescribed.

2 Schedule 2 These are the major Controlled Drugs. These products are subject to major control regarding manufacture, possession, and authorisation to supply. There are defined requirements for prescriptions, and also requirements for safe storage. These products do occur on NHS prescription.

http://www.whocc.no/ddd/definition_and_general_considera/�



Examples of Schedule 2 lines include Morphine, Cocaine, Diamorphine, Methadone and a number of the major narcotic analgesics .

3 Schedule 3 This schedule if for products where the degree of control is considered to be less vital. This usually means that record keeping is not essential and that prescription requirements are relaxed. Examples include Phenobarbitone, Temazepam and some of the older barbiturate products .

4 Schedule 4 These are products that are mainly controlled with respect to production and export/import. There are two basic groups, being the benzodiazepines and the anabolic steroids. These are products that are capable of being abused, and where a degree of control is required. These products can be dispensed on prescription, but possession without authority of a prescription and unauthorised supply are offences under the Act. Examples include Diazepam, Nitrazepam, Lorazepam (benzodiazepines) and Testosterone, Nandrolone, and Stanazol (anabolics).

5 Schedule 5 This is the lowest level of control, where there is potential for abuse. The only restriction for these drugs is that the supplier must retain the invoices for the products for two years, for inspection. Some of these products may be sold ‘over the counter’. There are no special requirements for prescription. Examples include Co-Codamol Tablets, Co-Proxamol Tablets, Codeine Linctus, and Dihydrocodeine Tablets.

5.14 eVADIS PRODUCT Unique identifier within eVADIS (eVAluated Drug Information System) for a product. A product describes the item at manufacturer level. See 5.2 (Prescribable Item Name) for detail. 5.15 STOCK ORDER CODE A code representing whether an item can be prescribed on a stock order form (GP10A): 1 Items not allowed on stock orders 2 Items allowable on stock orders 3 Items only allowable on stock orders



5.16 OXYGEN FLAG Flag indicating an oxygen item. Y Yes N No 5.17 CONTRACEPTIVE FLAG Flag indicating if the item is a contraceptive drug. Y Yes N No 5.18 DATE FROM Date From is the date at which the current set of details became valid. 5.19 DATE TO Date To is the date at which the current set of information became invalid.



BNF (British National Formulary) The BNF class provides a user with the ability to query information about drugs. The drugs can be grouped or selected by the BNF Hierarchy. Further information about the BNF can be found at http://www.bnf.org/bnf/. Two sets of these objects have been made drillable, and have been made into two drill hierarchies. The ‘BNF Code Hierarchy’ is comprised of the BNF Code objects; and the ‘BNF Hierarchy’ is comprised of the BNF objects that give both code and description. Further details of drill functionality are given on the PRISMS website http://www.prismsweb.scot.nhs.uk/. The drillable objects are indicated in the list below. The complete list of objects provided is: 5.20 CHAPTER BNF CODE The chapter code as defined by the BNF. Represented as a 2-digit code. This object is part of the BNF Code Drill Hierarchy. 5.21 CHAPTER BNF DESCRIPTION The chapter description as defined by the BNF. Note: This object can be used in a query filter but we advise that it would be better to use a code object as descriptions can change. Any changes are noted on the website. 5.22 CHAPTER BNF The chapter code and description, as defined by the BNF, combined in a single object. This object is part of the BNF Drill Hierarchy. Please note that this object cannot be used as a query filter. 5.23 SECTION BNF CODE The section code as defined by the BNF. Represented as a 4-digit code. This object is part of the BNF Code Drill Hierarchy. 5.24 SECTION BNF DESCRIPTION The section description as defined by the BNF. Note: This object can be used in a query filter but we advise that it would be better to use a code object as descriptions can and do change on a monthly basis. Any changes are noted on the website. 5.25 SECTION BNF The section code and description, as defined by the BNF, combined in a single object. This object is part of the BNF Drill Hierarchy. Please note that this object cannot be used as a query filter. 5.26 SUB-SECTION BNF CODE The sub-section code as defined by the BNF. Represented as a 6-character numerical code. This object is part of the BNF Code Drill Hierarchy.

http://www.bnf.org/bnf/�




5.27 SUB-SECTION BNF DESCRIPTION The sub-section description as defined by the BNF. Note: This object can be used in a query filter but we advise that it would be better to use a code object as descriptions can and do change on a monthly basis. Any changes are noted on the website. 5.28 SUB-SECTION BNF The sub-section code and description, as defined by the BNF, combined in a single object. This object is part of the BNF Drill Hierarchy. Please note that this object cannot be used as a query filter. 5.29 PARAGRAPH BNF CODE The paragraph code as defined by the BNF. Represented as a 7-character numerical code. This object is part of the BNF Code Drill Hierarchy. 5.30 PARAGRAPH BNF DESCRIPTION The paragraph description as defined by the BNF. Note: This object can be used in a query filter but we advise that it would be better to use a code object as descriptions can and do change on a monthly basis. Any changes are noted on the website. 5.31 PARAGRAPH BNF The paragraph code and description, as defined by the BNF, combined in a single object. This object is part of the BNF Drill Hierarchy. Please note that this object cannot be used as a query filter. 5.32 ROOT DRUG BNF CODE The root drug code as defined by the BNF. Represented as an 8- or 9-characters code. This object is part of the BNF Code Drill Hierarchy. 5.33 ROOT DRUG BNF DESCRIPTION The root drug description as defined by the BNF. Note: This object can be used in a query filter but we advise that it would be better to use a code object as descriptions can and do change on a monthly basis. Any changes are noted on the website. 5.34 ROOT DRUG BNF The root drug code and description, as defined by the BNF, combined in a single object. This object is part of the BNF Drill Hierarchy. Please note that this object cannot be used as a query filter. 5.35 ITEM BNF CODE The item code as defined by the BNF. Represented as the full BNF code of 15 characters. This object is part of the BNF Code Drill Hierarchy.



5.36 ITEM BNF DESCRIPTION The item description as defined by the BNF. Note: This object can be used in a query filter but we advise that it would be better to use a code object as descriptions can and do change on a monthly basis. Any changes are noted on the website. 5.37 ITEM BNF The item code and description, as defined by the BNF, combined in a single object. This object is part of the BNF Drill Hierarchy. Please note that this object cannot be used as a query filter. The following is an example of the above taken from PRISMS:



6.0 INTRODUCTION TO FORMS CLASS The Forms Class contains objects that enable reporting on prescription forms, their types and any exemptions that apply. 6.1 FORM TYPE The type of form: BOC BOC Invoices CD34 Declaration Form – Private controlled Drugs CP1 Minor Ailments Scheme CP2 Minor Ailments Scheme CPUS Urgent Supply of Medicines DTS/B Drug Testing Scheme FP10 Foreign Form – English/Welsh FP10 (CN) Foreign Form – English/Welsh FP10 (D) Foreign Form – English/Welsh Dental Form FP10 (HP) Foreign Form – English/Welsh FP10 (HP)(AD) Foreign Form – English/Welsh FP10 (MDA) Foreign Form – English/Welsh FP10P Foreign Form – English Nurse or Hospital FP10PCD Private Prescription controlled Drugs (Foreign) FP10 (PN) Foreign Form – English/Welsh Nurse Prescribing Form FP14 Foreign Form – English/Welsh GP10 GP Standard Prescription Form GP10A Stock Order Form GP10 (CN) Nurses – Prescription Forms GP10N Nurses – Prescription Forms GP10P Pharmacists Prescription Form GP10 (PN) Nurses – Prescription Forms GP10S Nurses – Appliance Forms GP14 Dentist Prescription Form GP34 Declaration Form – CP GP34A Declaration Form – DD GP34B Declaration Form – AS GP64A Oxygen Delivery Claim Form HBP Hospital Form HBPA Hospital Addict Form HBPN Hospital Nurse Form HBPP Hospital Pharmacists Form HS10 Irish Form HS21 Irish Form HS21C Irish Form HS21N Irish Form HS47 Irish Form PC70 Instalment Dispensing Claim Form PPCD Private Prescription Controlled Drugs WP10 Foreign Form – Welsh GP WP10D Foreign Form – Welsh Dentist WP10HP Foreign Form – Welsh Hospital WP10HP (AD) Foreign Form – Welsh Drug Addiction Clinic WP10MDA Foreign Form – Welsh GP for Drug Addict WP10PN Foreign Form – Welsh Nurse



*Note: GP10 (CN) and GP10 (PN) form types are not currently supplied by DCVP. They are passed as ‘generic’ form type GP10N. 6.2 FORM TYPE DESCRIPTION The description of the form. Refer to Form Type for examples. 6.3 CLASS OF PREPARATION (DISPENSED) A code, which indicates whether or not substitution has taken place, and the class of substitution: 1 Drugs prescribed as generic, dispensed as generic 2 Drugs prescribed as generic, dispensed as proprietary 3 Drugs prescribed and dispensed as proprietary 4 Appliance and dressings – generic 6 Appliances and dressings – specific manufacturer 7 Oxygen 9 Unallocated This object should be used when reporting on dispensed facts. Note: you will notice that there is a Class of Preparation for dispensed and one for paid. Both objects refer to the same information, but for technical reasons if you wish to report on the information by dispensed or paid, use the appropriate object. 6.4 CLASS OF PREPARATION (PAID) A code, which indicates whether or not substitution has taken place, and the class of substitution: 1 Drugs prescribed as generic, dispensed as generic 2 Drugs prescribed as generic, dispensed as proprietary 3 Drugs prescribed and dispensed as proprietary 4 Appliance and dressings – generic 6 Appliances and dressings – specific manufacturer 7 Oxygen 9 Unallocated This object should be used when reporting on paid facts. Note: you will notice that there is a Class of Preparation for dispensed and one for paid. Both objects refer to the same information, but for technical reasons if you wish to report on the information by dispensed or paid, use the appropriate object.



6.5 EXEMPTION CODE This code represents the code given for prescription exemptions. Below is a list of the exemption categories and the code which is attributed to them on prescription forms and within PRISMS. Form Coding

PRISMS Coding

Description

A 01 Is under 16 years of age B 02 Is 16, 17 or 18 years of age and in full time education C 03 Is 60 years of age or over D 04 Has a valid maternity or medical exemption certificate (EC92) E 05 Has a valid prescription pre-payment certificate F 06 Has a valid War Pension exemption certificate G 07 Gets, or has a partner who gets Income Support H 08 Has a partner who gets ‘Pension Credit guarantee credit’

(PCGC) I 09 Gets, or has a partner who gets, income based Jobseekers

Allowance J 10 Is entitled to, or named on, a valid NHS Tax Credit Exemption

Certificate K 11 Is named on a current NHS HC2 charges certificate L 12 Was prescribed free-of-charge contraceptives M 13 Gets, or has a partner who gets, income related Employment

Support Allowance N 14 Was prescribed free-of-charge medicine to treat tuberculosis Z 99 General exemption 00 Charged Note: These categories may change over time



7.0 INTRODUCTION TO PRESCRIPTION COST ALLOCATIONS CLASS This class is used to report on how organisations are performing against their budget. Budgets are allocated at organisation level and therefore it only makes sense to combine budget objects with organisation and time dimensions. 7.1 TOTAL PRESCRIPTION ITEMS Total Prescription Items is the aggregation of number of paid items for the organisation. Note: When reporting on how CHPs are performing, always sum the practice allocations or expenditure to get the CHP total. 7.2 ALLOCATION GIC Allocation GIC is the monthly budget allocated annually to each GP practice for drugs and appliances. It does NOT include the Contingency Allocation GIC. 7.3 EXPENDITURE GIC Expenditure GIC is the money spent on drugs and appliances by an organisation. It incorporates costs from all dispensings that have been paid for prescriber types CP, GP, NUR and PHM. The costs relate to the gross ingredient cost of the paid item i.e. what the practice get charged and not the net ingredient cost which is what gets paid to the dispenser. This object can only be used in conjunction with organisation and time objects. Note: Since Expenditure GIC deals with costs for paid items, deferred payments have an effect on the month-by-month figures. As such it is not possible to write a query, or multiple queries, to match the results from GIC (Dispensed) and Expenditure GIC. Deferred payments are those where an item is dispensed in one month but not paid until the next month.



8.0 INTRODUCTION TO DISPENSED FACTS CLASS PRISMS includes two classes of measure objects relating to prescribing, ‘Dispensed Facts’, containing detail of all drugs and appliances dispensed; and ‘Paid Facts’, with detail of all drugs and appliances dispensers have been paid for. The values given by these classes of objects may differ for the following reasons:

There may be a difference between the paid and dispensed cost due to pharmacy payment rates for some items.

Dispensed Facts includes non-paid items. Contents The Dispensed Facts class contains details of all the line item records for appliances and drugs (items or ingredients) dispensed (which may not equate to those prescribed). It contains details such as:

Quantity Gross costs

8.1 DEFINED DAILY DOSES (DDDS)

8.1.1. DDDs (Dispensed Current) 8.1.2. DDDs (Dispensed Historic)

Defined Daily Dose (DDD) is a measure devised by WHO (the World Health Organisation) to help compare the use of different drugs, and is based on the assumed average maintenance dose per day for a drug when used for its main indication in adults. It should be emphasised that the defined daily dose is a unit of measurement intended for making comparisons and does not necessarily reflect the recommended or actual used dose. The DDD for substances is normally based on monotherapy (the use of a single drug to treat a particular disorder or disease), and a DDD will not normally be assigned for a product before it is approved and marketed in at least one country. This data item contains the number of defined daily doses, based on WHO conversion factors (e.g. if the WHO DDD is 20mg, and 40mg is dispensed, the number of defined daily doses = 2) DDDs (Dispensed Current) - this object uses the current DDD conversion factor to calculate the number of DDDs dispensed over a period of time. DDDs (Dispensed Historic) - this object uses the DDD conversion factor that was current at the time of the dispensing to calculate the number of DDDs dispensed. Updating DDDs Updates to existing DDDs are received monthly from the Prescription Pricing Division (PPD) and will be updated monthly for PRISMS users. PPD add new DDDs (i.e. for drugs which previously had none) every January so these should be available to PRISMS users in February. DDDs and alterations are published twice annually by the WHO. For more information on DDDs please refer to http://www.whocc.no/ddd/definition_and_general_considera/ Further information regarding DDDs and their use can be found in Appendix B.




8.2 NO OF ITEMS (DISPENSED) The number of times an item appears on a prescription. It is not the number of times an item is dispensed. For example, a patient receives a prescription for weekly dispensings of Simvastatin 40mg for one month’s supply. This would appear as one item in PRISMS but the prescription would be dispensed four times. 8.3 GIC (DISPENSED) Gross Ingredient Cost (GIC) is the cost of an item before any discount is applied (analogous to recommended retail price). It is the sum charged to the prescribers’ drug budget. It does not include any costs or fees associated with the dispensing of the item. Nor does it include any fees paid by the patient (or their representative). Note: this excludes broken bulk and can not be used with dispenser details. 8.4 QUANTITY (DISPENSED) Quantity of drug/appliance dispensed. This may differ from what was prescribed or paid. Note: the unit of quantity depends on the formulation (e.g. tablets, capsules, liquids, etc). Please also refer to Appendix E



9.0 INTRODUCTION TO PAID FACTS CLASS PRISMS includes two classes of measure objects relating to prescribing, ‘Dispensed Facts’, containing detail of all drugs and appliances dispensed; and ‘Paid Facts’, with detail of all drugs and appliances dispensers have been paid for. The values given by these classes of objects may differ for the following reasons:

There may be a difference between the paid and dispensed cost due to pharmacy payment rates for some items.

Dispensed Facts includes non-paid items. Contents The Paid Facts class contains details of all the line item records for drugs/appliances paid. This is the lowest level of payment details held by the PRISMS database. It contains details of what was paid to the dispenser, which may differ from what was dispensed, and which may in turn differ from what was prescribed. 9.1 DEFINED DAILY DOSES (DDDS)

9.1.1. DDDs (Paid Current) 9.1.2. DDDs (Paid Historic)

Defined Daily Dose (DDD) is a measure devised by WHO (the World Health Organisation) to help compare the use of different drugs, and is based on the assumed average maintenance dose per day for a drug when used for its main indication in adults. It should be emphasised that the defined daily dose is a unit of measurement intended for making comparisons and does not necessarily reflect the recommended or actual used dose. The DDD for substances is normally based on monotherapy (the use of a single drug to treat a particular disorder or disease), and a DDD will not normally be assigned for a product before it is approved and marketed in at least one country. This data item contains the number of defined daily doses, based on WHO conversion factors (e.g. if the WHO DDD is 20mg, and 40mg is dispensed, the number of defined daily doses = 2). DDDs (Paid Current) - this object uses the current DDD conversion factor to calculate the number of DDDs over a period of time. Note: this can not be used with dispenser details. DDDs (Paid Historic) - this object uses the DDD conversion factor that was current at the time of the payment to calculate the number of DDDs paid. Note: this can not be used with dispenser details. Updating DDDs Updates to existing DDDs are received monthly from the Prescription Pricing Division (PPD) and will be updated monthly for PRISMS users. PPD add new DDDs (i.e. for drugs which previously had none) every January so these should be available to PRISMS users in February. DDDs and alterations are published twice annually by the WHO. For more information on DDDs please refer to http://www.whocc.no/ddd/definition_and_general_considera/ Further information regarding DDDs and their use can be found in Appendix B.




9.2 NO OF ITEMS (PAID) The number of items for which the dispenser has been paid. Note: this can not be used with dispenser details. 9.3 GIC (PAID) Gross Ingredient Cost (GIC) is the cost of an item before any discount is applied (analogous to recommended retail price). It does not include any costs or fees associated with the dispensing of the item. Nor does it include any fees paid by the patient (or their representative). It also excludes broken bulk. This is currently replacing the old NIC (Paid) object and should be used only as an indicator of the amount paid to the dispenser for the item dispensed. 9.4 QUANTITY (PAID) The quantity (e.g. of a drug) paid for. Not necessarily the same as the quantity prescribed, or dispensed. Note: The unit of quantity depends on the formulation (e.g. tablets, capsules, liquids, etc) and this can not be used with dispenser details. Please refer to Appendix E



10.0 INTRODUCTION TO DERIVED FACTS CLASS Pre-defined derived variables, as listed below, are available in the Derived Facts class. For information on some general rules that have been applied to derived variables refer to Appendix C. 10.1 % GENERIC PRESCRIBED Using the Dispensed Facts class, this is calculated as follows A+B x 100 A+B+C Where: A Total No of Items (Dispensed) for Class 1 preparation (drugs prescribed and dispensed as generic) B Total No of Items (Dispensed) for Class 2 preparation (drugs prescribed as generic, dispensed as proprietary) C Total No of Items (Dispensed) for Class 3 preparation (drugs prescribed and dispensed as proprietary) Adding the derived variable % Generic Prescribed object to an ad-hoc query will limit your results to items prescribed in classes of preparation 1, 2 and 3 only. Items prescribed under any other class of preparation will be excluded from your results. 10.2 BUDGET PERFORMANCE (MONETARY) This is calculated as follows GIC (Paid) – Allocation GIC This object cannot be used in the same query as any object from the Prescribers Class. Figures from the Paid class are used as the basis of this calculation in order to ensure that the figures given are consistent with the budget reports provided in PRISMS. Note: Contingency Allocation GIC is excluded from this calculation as is broken bulk. 10.3 BUDGET PERFORMANCE (%) This is calculated as follows GIC (Paid) – Allocation GIC x 100 Allocation GIC Note: This object cannot be used in the same query as any object from the Prescribers Class. Figures from the Paid class are used as the basis of this calculation in order to ensure that the figures given are consistent with the budget reports provided in PRISMS. Note: Contingency Allocation GIC is excluded from this calculation as is broken bulk.



10.4 COST (GIC) / DDD This is calculated as follows GIC (Dispensed) DDDs (Dispensed Current) 10.5 COST (GIC) / ITEM This is calculated as follows GIC (Dispensed) No of Items (Dispensed) 10.6 COST (GIC) / PATIENT This is calculated as follows GIC (Dispensed) Organisation List Size This object cannot be used in the same query as any object from the Prescribers Class. Note (a) in Appendix C applies. 10.7 COST (GIC) / 1000 PATIENTS This is calculated as follows GIC (Dispensed) x 1000 Organisation List Size This object cannot be used in the same query as any object from the Prescribers Class. Note (a) in Appendix C applies. 10.8 COST (GIC) / 1000 WEIGHTED PATIENTS This is calculated as follows GIC (Dispensed) x 1000 Scotland Weighted List Size This object cannot be used in the same query as any object from the Prescribers Class. Notes (a) and (b) in Appendix C apply. 10.9 DDDS / ITEM This is calculated as follows DDDs (Dispensed Current) No of Items (Dispensed)



10.10 DDDs / PATIENT This is calculated as follows DDDs (Dispensed Current) Organisation List Size This object cannot be used in the same query as any object from the Prescribers Class. Note (a) in Appendix C applies. 10.11 DDDs / 1000 PATIENTS This is calculated as follows DDDs (Dispensed Current) x 1000 Organisation List Size This object cannot be used in the same query as any object from the Prescribers Class. Note (a) in Appendix C applies. 10.12 DDDs / 1000 WEIGHTED PATIENTS This is calculated as follows DDDs (Dispensed Current) x 1000 Scotland Weighted List Size This object cannot be used in the same query as any object from the Prescribers Class. Notes (a) and (b) in Appendix C apply. 10.13 ITEMS / PATIENT This is calculated as follows No of Items (Dispensed) Organisation List Size This object cannot be used in the same query as any object from the Prescribers Class. Note (a) in Appendix C applies. 10.14 ITEMS / 1000 PATIENTS This is calculated as follows No of Items (Dispensed) x 1000 Organisation List Size This object cannot be used in the same query as any object from the Prescribers Class. Note (a) in Appendix C applies.



10.15 ITEMS / 1000 WEIGHTED PATIENTS This is calculated as follows No of Items (Dispensed) x 1000 Scotland Weighted List Size This object cannot be used in the same query as any object from the Prescribers Class. Notes (a) and (b) in Appendix C apply. 10.16 QUANTITY / ITEM This is calculated as follows Quantity (Dispensed) No of Items (Dispensed) Please refer to Appendix E 10.17 QUANTITY / PATIENT This is calculated as follows Quantity (Dispensed) Organisation List Size This object cannot be used in the same query as any object from the Prescribers Class. Note (a) in Appendix C applies. Please also refer to Appendix E 10.18 QUANTITY / 1000 PATIENTS This is calculated as follows Quantity (Dispensed) x 1000 Organisation List Size This object cannot be used in the same query as any object from the Prescribers Class. Note (a) in Appendix C applies. Please also refer to Appendix E 10.19 QUANTITY / 1000 WEIGHTED PATIENTS This is calculated as follows Quantity (Dispensed) x 1000 Scotland Weighted List Size This object cannot be used in the same query as any object from the Prescribers Class. Notes (a) and (b) in Appendix C apply. Please also refer to Appendix E



Paid Derived Facts 10.20 % GENERIC PRESCRIBED (PAID) Using the Paid Facts class, this is calculated as follows A+B x 100 A+B+C Where: A Total No of Items (Paid) for Class 1 preparation (drugs prescribed and dispensed as generic) B Total No of Items (Paid) for Class 2 preparation (drugs prescribed as generic, dispensed as proprietary) C Total No of Items (Paid) for Class 3 preparation (drugs prescribed and dispensed as proprietary) Adding the derived variable % Generic Prescribed object to an ad-hoc query will limit your results in two ways 1) to products in chapters 01 to 15 only as generic prescribing is only measured for medicines use 2) to items prescribed in classes of preparation 1, 2 and 3 only. Items prescribed under any other class of

preparation will be excluded from your results. 10.21 DDDs / ITEM (PAID) This is calculated as follows DDDs (Paid Current) No of Items (Paid) 10.22 DDDs / PATIENT (PAID) This is calculated as follows DDDs (Paid Current) Organisation List Size This object cannot be used in the same query as any object from the Prescribers Class. Note (a) in Appendix C applies. 10.23 DDDs / 1000 PATIENTS (PAID) This is calculated as follows DDDs (Paid Current) x 1000 Organisation List Size This object cannot be used in the same query as any object from the Prescribers Class. Note (a) in Appendix C applies. 10.24 DDDs / 1000 WGT PATIENTS (PAID)



This is calculated as follows DDDs (Paid Current) x 1000 Scotland Weighted List Size This object cannot be used in the same query as any object from the Prescribers Class. Notes (a) and (b) in Appendix C apply. 10.25 ITEMS / PATIENT (PAID) This is calculated as follows No of Items (Paid) Organisation List Size This object cannot be used in the same query as any object from the Prescribers Class. Note (a) in Appendix C applies. 10.26 ITEMS / 1000 PATIENTS (PAID) This is calculated as follows No of Items (Paid) x 1000 Organisation List Size This object cannot be used in the same query as any object from the Prescribers Class. Note (a) in Appendix C applies. 10.27 ITEMS / 1000 WGT PATIENTS (PAID) This is calculated as follows No of Items (Paid) x 1000 Scotland Weighted List Size This object cannot be used in the same query as any object from the Prescribers Class. Notes (a) and (b) in Appendix C apply. 10.28 QUANTITY / ITEM (PAID) This is calculated as follows Quantity (Paid) No of Items (Paid) Please refer to Appendix E



10.29 QUANTITY / PATIENT (PAID) This is calculated as follows Quantity (Paid) Organisation List Size This object cannot be used in the same query as any object from the Prescribers Class. Note (a) in Appendix C applies. Please also refer to Appendix E 10.30 QUANTITY / 1000 PATIENTS (PAID) This is calculated as follows Quantity (Paid) x 1000 Organisation List Size This object cannot be used in the same query as any object from the Prescribers Class. Note (a) in Appendix C applies. Please also refer to Appendix E 10.31 QUANTITY / 1000 WGT PATIENTS (PAID) This is calculated as follows Quantity (Paid) x 1000 Scotland Weighted List Size This object cannot be used in the same query as any object from the Prescribers Class. Notes (a) and (b) in Appendix C apply. Please also refer to Appendix E



11.0 INTRODUCTION TO LIST SIZES CLASS The List Size measure objects in this class can be used in conjunction with other measures such as GIC (Dispensed) and with dimensions, for example, Approved Name or Calendar Year. For guidelines on their use, please see the PRISMS website http://www.prismsweb.scot.nhs.uk/. Note: The List Size measures contained in the Miscellaneous Class under Organisation are of limited use. They can only be used to produce a list size at a point in time for a specified organisation (or a group of organisations) or to show how the list size for an organisation (or group of organisations) has changed over time. Note: There are no list sizes for dentists. 11.1 LIST SIZE This represents the list size for the organisation being analysed. For example, if your query includes Practice Reference then this list size is the practice list size. This object cannot be used in conjunction with prescriber dimensions. 11.2 LIST SIZE 65 PLUS This represents the number of patients in the organisation aged 65 or over. This object cannot be used in conjunction with prescriber dimensions; no equivalent information is held for individual prescribers. 11.3 LIST SIZE UP TO 64 This represents the number of patients in the organisation aged 64 or under. This object cannot be used in conjunction with prescriber dimensions; no equivalent information is held for individual prescribers. Updating List Sizes List sizes are generally updated quarterly at the beginning of the months January, April, July and October. Practice Splits/Mergers and New Practices In these cases the practice list size is updated as soon as known, so this may occur at the beginning of any month Note: List size objects cannot be used in conjunction with prescriber dimensions. They relate to organisations not individuals.




11.4 WEIGHTED LIST SIZE

11.4.1. Scotland Weighted List Size 11.4.2. HB Weighted List Size 11.4.3. CHP Weighted List Size

The current method for deriving a weighting formula is detailed on the website for the national Resource Allocation Committee (NRAC) - http://www.nrac.scot.nhs.uk/ This weighting became effective 1 April 2009 and superseded the Arbuthnott formula. This formula is used to inflate or deflate actual populations to provide a needs weighted population at every organisational level e.g. NHS Board, practice. ‘weighted population - Scotland base’ is the value used in constructing standard reports and standard derived variables in order that comparisons between practices right across Scotland are valid. The other two variables are available for use as required in PRISMS via the ad hoc query interface. Updating Weighted List Sizes Weighting factors are calculated once a year; they are based on practice list sizes in October and become available in January/February of the following year, they are then applied to practice list sizes for the coming financial year (i.e. April-March inclusive). For example weighting factors based on October 2009 practice list sizes will be applied to practices from April 2010 till March 2011 inclusive. Weighted list sizes will be updated quarterly in line with practice list sizes at the beginning of January, April, July and October i.e. if the practice list size changes then the Weighted List Size will be updated accordingly by applying the same weighting factor to the updated list size. Note: the weightings held on PRISMS will differ slightly from those derived by the NRAC team from the General Registrar’s Office (Scotland) mid-year population estimates. Organisational Change and Weighted List Sizes Please note that the CHP Weighted List Size object will only return a value from April 2006 onwards. For any period of time prior to April 2006, it will return a zero value. Practice Splits/ Mergers and New Practices In these cases the weighted list sizes will not be calculated until the normal routine calculation the following October. The fields in PRISMS will be left blank until then. The reason for this is that until the new organisations settle down more accurate estimates of weighted list sizes can be made locally. Note: Weighted list size objects cannot be used in conjunction with prescriber dimensions. They relate to organisations not individuals.

http://www.nrac.scot.nhs.uk/�



Appendix A – Additional Information on Weighted List Sizes Background The current method for deriving a weighting formula is detailed on the website for the National Resource Allocation Committee (NRAC) - http://www.nrac.scot.nhs.uk/ This weighting became effective 1 April 2009 and superseded the Arbuthnott formula. Issues concerning weighted populations 1. Which Cost to use on the Denominator? The actual value of the adjusted practice population can vary depending on what Total expected cost is used as the denominator for calculating the weighting. Weighting Denominator Outcome Total Scotland Cost Each practice is compared to all other

practices in Scotland. Adjusted practice populations aggregate up to

CHP and NHS Board adjusted populations. Total HB Cost Each practice is compared to all other

practices in the NHS Board. Not suitable for comparing practices in

different NHS Boards Adjusted practice populations aggregate up to

actual unadjusted NHS Board populations Total CHP Cost Each practice is compared to all other

practices in CHP. Not suitable for comparing practices in

different CHPs. Adjusted practice populations aggregate up to

actual unadjusted CHP populations. An example of the effect of the different denominators on weighted populations for 21 practices in one CHP is shown in Figure 1 (below). Using the Total Scotland Cost denominator means that practice populations aggregate up to adjusted CHP and NHS Board populations and means that comparisons between practices in different CHPs and NHS Boards are still valid.

http://www.nrac.scot.nhs.uk/�



2. Time Trends using Adjusted Populations. If weighting factors are updated each year using current data then adjusted populations will not be comparable from year-to-year, making trend analysis difficult. This is because although a practice’s expected cost may rise or fall from year-to-year, the weighting is relative to the denominator cost e.g. total cost across all practices. Therefore it is also dependent on changes to the denominator costs that may rise or fall for different reasons. A worked example is detailed later. For this reason caution must be taken in interpreting any trend analysis using weighted populations. 3. Timing of updates (new practices) The weighting formula is updated on an annual basis (usually in January) using the most up-to-date information available at the time. Practices and their list populations are included based on a snapshot of those present mid-way through the financial year (i.e. 1st October). The weightings are then applied to the following financial year. This makes it difficult to deal with practices (splitting and merging of existing populations) or practices opening and closing (transfer of existing populations). Splitting, merging or newly created practices will be provided weighted populations once they become available through normal processes. This could result in a delay of up to 18 months but ensures that the weighted populations provided are accurate. How is the Expected cost calculated? Expected costs for a practice are based on two main factors: 1. Age and sex of practice patients



The numbers of patients in each age and sex category are multiplied by the cost per head of prescribing based on national data (SCOT-PUs). This gives age-sex adjusted expected costs. 2. The Weighting (Arbuthnott or NRAC) index of the practice The Arbuthnott index measures the morbidity and life circumstances of the practice patient population and is based on a composite of the following variables for the practice population:

Standardised Mortality Ratio in the population aged under 65 Proportion of the population aged 65 and over claiming income support Standardised proportion of working age population claiming unemployment benefit Proportion of households having two or more indicators of deprivation.

Age-sex adjusted expected costs are adjusted upwards or downwards depending on whether the Arbuthnott index is higher (more morbid) or lower (less morbid) than average. This is done separately for the cost of prescribing in each of 6 therapeutic categories then aggregated to give total expected cost. The six categories are: Gastrointestinal (BNF Chapter 1) Cardiovascular (BNF Chapter 2) Central Nervous System (BNF sections 4.1-4.3, 4.10, 4.11) Infections (BNF Chapter 5) Muscular and Joint Diseases (BNF Chapter 10 and section 4.7) Other Practice level expected costs are aggregated up to NHS Board level. NHS Board expected costs are converted to Arbuthnott weightings by dividing by the Total Scotland expected cost. These weightings are then applied to the total list size population to give adjusted populations (see example below): Board List

Population Expected

cost (£000) Weighting

(%) Adjusted

Population Difference

A 5,000 700 16 8,000 +3,000 B 10,000 1,200 27 13,500 +3,500 C 20,000 1,500 34 17,000 -3,000 D 15,000 1,000 23 11,500 -3,500 Total 50,000 4,400 100 50,000 0 Time trend analysis If Arbuthnott weights are updated each year using current data then adjusted populations will not be comparable from year-to-year, making trend analysis difficult. An example is shown below showing two years of expected costs and their weightings.



Practice Year 1 Year 2 Expected cost Weighting (%) Expected Cost Weighting (%) A 700 16 800 14 B 1,200 27 1,400 25 C 1,500 34 2,000 35 D 1,000 23 1,500 26 Total 4,400 100 5,700 100 In practices A and B expected costs rise from year 1 to year 2 which should result in an increase in their adjusted populations. However both their weightings decrease and so, if overall populations are roughly static from year to year, then their adjusted populations will also decrease.



Appendix B – Additional Information on DDDs Defined Daily Dose In order to measure or compare drug use, it is important to have a recognised unit of measurement. It is important to have a stable and consistent method that makes it possible to compare drug statistics and study long-term trends in drug exposure, at both local and national levels. There are different ways of expressing drug consumption. Cost Drug use can be expressed in terms of cost. Cost figures are suitable for overall cost analysis of drug expenditure. Cost analyses are also applicable to prescription studies of one single substance. Price differences between alternative preparations make evaluation difficult. Long-term studies are also difficult due to price changes. When cost data are used, an increase in the use of cheaper drugs may have little influence on the total level, while a shift to more expensive drugs is more readily noticed. Volume Common physical units (e.g., grams, kilos, and litres), number of packages or tablets and number of prescriptions are also used in quantifying drug consumption. These units can be applied only when the use of one drug or of well-defined products is evaluated. Problems arise, however, when the consumption of whole drug groups are considered. If consumption is given in grams of active ingredient, drugs with low potency will have a larger fraction of the total drug than drugs with high potency. Combined products may also contain different amounts of active ingredients from plain products, which will not be reflected in the figures. Counting the number of tablets also has disadvantages, because strengths of tablets vary, with the result that low strength preparations relatively contribute more than high strength preparations. In addition, short-acting preparations will often contribute more than long-acting preparations. Number of prescriptions does not give a good expression of total use, unless total amounts per prescription are also being considered. Counting of prescriptions, however, is of great value in measuring the frequency of prescriptions and in evaluating the clinical use of drugs (e.g. diagnosis and dosages used). Defined Daily Dose (DDD) To deal with objections against traditional units of measurement, a technical unit of measurement was developed by the World Health Organisation (WHO) called the Defined Daily Dose (DDD). The basic definition of this unit is- “The DDD is the assumed average maintenance dose per day for a drug used in its main indication in adults.” It should be emphasised that the defined daily dose is a unit of measurement and does not necessarily reflect the recommended or actual used dose. The individual dosages used will differ from the DDD and will necessarily have to be based on individual characteristics, e.g., age and weight, and pharmacokinetic considerations. Drug consumption data presented in DDDs only give a rough estimate of consumption and not an exact picture of actual use. The DDD provide a fixed unit of measurement independent of price and dosage form (e.g. tablet strength) enabling the assessment of trends in drug consumption and to perform comparisons between population groups.



For detailed information on DDDs please refer to the WHO website - http://www.whocc.no/ddd/definition_and_general_considera/ Maintenance The DDDs for a particular drug may change with time. Analysis of DDDs over time (trend analysis) When undertaking an analysis using historical data the option to report either the DDDs that were calculated at the time or recalculate the DDDs using the current DDD value is available. However we would recommend that the DDDs (Dispensed Current) object should be used.




Appendix C – General Rules Applied to Derived Facts Some general rules have been applied as follows: a. Use of List Sizes as Denominators A number of derived variables use list size and weighted list size as denominators and these values can vary from month to month. When a derived variable, expressed as a total per patient or weighted patient, is calculated for a period of time, the value is calculated by dividing the total of the numerator variable by the average list size per month during the period. For example, assume a practice has the following list sizes and number of items dispensed during a three-month period: Nov 2003: list size=800 items=2000 Dec 2003: list size=800 items=2400 Jan 2004: list size=900 items=2700 Then the total number of items dispensed per 1000 patients for the period Nov 2003 - Jan 2004 is: (2000 + 2400+2700)/((800+800+900)/3) * 1000 = 8520. Implementation Because the database has been streamlined to increase efficiency, the calculation will be done in a slightly different way in the following circumstance: If the numerator is zero (e.g. a drug was not prescribed) during a particular month for a specific practice, then no data relating to this drug/practice/month combination, including the practice list size, is held in the database. Thus, for example, when the calculation is done for a year, which includes that month, the calculated average list size over the period is actually the average over the 11 months. In practice, in the vast majority of circumstances, the derived variables calculated by the two methods will be the same or show a <0.1% difference. Material differences may show in derived variables in practice level reports if i. The drug is rarely prescribed and ii. The practice list size changes considerably during the period of the query. There will be no differences higher up the Hierarchy unless the drug is extremely rare. Organisation List Size The organisation list size used will be the list size of the Practice, the CHP, the NHS Board or Scotland depending on the objects in your query. The variable will be calculated using the list size of the lowest organisation level included in your query.



b. Scotland weighted list size Weighted list sizes used in derived variables are those calculated by using the total Scotland cost as the denominator. This means that each practice is comparable to all other practices in Scotland and adjusted practice populations aggregate up to CHP and NHS Board adjusted populations. Further information regarding weighted list sizes and their use can be found in Appendix A. c. Comparison Comparison reports returns data on Cost per Item, Cost per Patient, Items per 1000 Patients and % Generic Prescribed for practice(s) in a Sub CHP, CHP, NHS Health Board, allowing you to compare the measures against averages within their organisational hierarchy. d. Groupings of Items When the term ‘item’ is used in the derived variable description, the derived variable is available for individual items and sets of items grouped by BNF. e. Definitions The variables used in the calculations are defined in the appropriate section in the manual. f. Compatibility Any derived variable that uses list size or weighted list size cannot be used with Prescriber or Dispenser dimensions. If you attempt to run a query that combines a Prescriber or Dispenser object with one of those derived variables you will get the following error message:



Appendix D – Dispenser Reference This is the reference code for the dispenser. It is allocated by PSD Pharmacy.

NHS Board Pharmacy Dispensing Doctors Appliance Supplier

Ayrshire & Arran 5000 - 5277 5410 - 5455 5460 - 5468

Borders 8000 - 8058 8420 - 8450

Dumfries & Galloway 7500 - 7635 7901 - 7966

Fife 6000 - 6233 6420 - 6439

Forth Valley 6500 - 6702

6978 6920 - 6955 6979 - 6981

Grampian

4000 - 4349 4460

4350 - 4431 4433 - 4434 4451 - 4459 4462 - 4474

4432 4435 - 4437

Greater Glasgow & Clyde

1000 - 1662 4502 - 4727

4730 4732 - 4737 4742 - 4743 4745 - 4751 4754 - 4757 4761 - 4763

4767 4769

4771 - 4772 4774 - 4780

4949 1901 - 1925

Highland 7000 - 7138

4516 4518 4520 4527 4577 4644

4668 - 4672 4676 4685

4728 - 4729 4731

4738 - 4741 4744 4752

4759 - 4760 4765 - 4766

4768 4770 4773

7309 - 7343 7386 - 7489

4913 - 4943 4957 - 4999

7356

Lanarkshire 3000 - 3322 3820 - 3855 3901

Lothian 2000 - 2520 2820 - 2825 2900 - 2924

Orkney 9000 - 9002 9402 - 9447

Shetland 9500 - 9508 9902 - 9942

Tayside 5500 - 5770 5900 - 5936 5950 - 5972

Western Isles 8500 - 8505 8902 - 8954

England

8600 - 8620 9999



Appendix E – Quantity Quantity is only useful at an individual product level. The unit of quantity depends on the formulation (e.g. tablets, capsules, liquids, etc). Please see examples below:-

prisms - ndc

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