Can this data inform my choice of hospital?
You can use this website to see how a hospital’s survival rate compares to its predicted range, but the data cannot tell you which hospital to go to. Please discuss this with your child’s clinical team or access the support offered by specialist charities such as the Children’s Heart Federation.
On this site, you can explore the data to see how the different hospitals’ survival rates compare to their own predicted ranges for 3 year report periods. You can also use the national audit website to explore how many operations of each type a hospital does and survival outcomes for each of these. However, this website cannot, in itself, tell you which hospital you should go to and does not provide proof that one hospital is “better” than any other. The safety or otherwise of a hospital cannot be determined from survival data alone.
When considering which hospital, there are many factors to take into account, including how well the clinical team know your child and his or her medical history, any particular medical issues that your child has (for instance, some hospitals specialise in treating children with particularly complex medical problems) and how far the hospital is from your home.
You should discuss your child’s care with their specialist cardiologist to determine the best treatment option for your child.
You can also access the support available from national charities such as the Children’s Heart Federation or Little Hearts Matter or local charities for your specialist children’s hospital. These guides on speaking to your child’s surgeon or seeking a second opinion, written by the Children’s Heart Federation, might also be helpful.
