Core management data in general practice

General practice computer systems are remarkably sophisticated but their potential is underused. In contrast many private sector businesses use IT meticulously to measure performance. For example, many retail stores know exactly how sales change according to how they position goods in the shop or even how they alter the lighting. Following Drucker,1 the father of management theory, ‘If you don’t measure it, you can’t manage it.’ Drawing on research and data collection performed at a practice over 30 years, we suggest that there are eight core management statistics that are easily available to every general practice. These make it possible for GPs to understand exactly what is happening in the practice. The core data are: the number, the age/sex structure and the duration of registration of the registered patients, the annual consultation rate, the average duration of face-to-face GP consultations, level of continuity of care, and measures of routine appointment provision and availability. All GPs already understand the importance of knowing the number of patients registered with the practice and this figure is commonly used when describing a general practice. This is available for the population nationally, regionally, and for individual practices. It is particularly helpful to know the proportion of older patients, since they have many more health problems, which helps planning. This is freely available to all practices on the Public Health England Practice Profiles …