Use data science approach to boost NHS standards and patient safety | Letter

Prof Steven Yule says frontline workers should be seen as elite endurance teams, with investment in tools to support their learning and development

Jeremy Hunt is right to caution that NHS reform must not come at the expense of patient safety (Thirty-seven patients die needlessly each day in the NHS. Change is good, but patient safety must come first, 24 March). But if Wes Streeting is to succeed where others have failed, we must look beyond structural reshuffles and focus on what truly keeps patients safe – how clinical teams perform under pressure.

Non-technical skills, including situation awareness, team coordination and leadership are not optional extras; they are critical to safe care. Two decades of behavioural science research have consistently demonstrated that breakdowns in these skills are associated with adverse outcomes for patients. Despite this, healthcare systems have been slow to support frontline teams with systematic approaches to the measurement and improvement of clinical performance.