NHS Acute Aortic Dissection Toolkit
NHS England responded to our call for action to improve patient outcomes by publishing the Acute Aortic Dissection Toolkit. We provide the patient voice on the Toolkit working group.
As regions implement the NHSE AAD toolkit, we are providing them with support through teams of patients and relatives with lived experience of aortic dissection. Congratulations to the joint team that is implementing the toolkit in the NHS England South-West and South-Central regions, for being the first area of the UK to have their AAD patient pathway and Standard Operating Procedure (SOP) endorsed by the national patient charity. This is great, life-saving work.
We will measure the success of the NHSE AAD toolkit implementation nationally and regionally by looking at the increase in the number of aortic dissection patients having surgery at specialist centres; and at the reduction in incidence of the five key adverse outcomes in our PRISM model - Paraplegia, Re-intervention, Infection, Stroke and Mortality.
We also expect, over time, to see evidence that implementing the NHSE AAD toolkit has reduced the unwarranted regional variation - "the postcode lottery" - in care and outcomes for acute aortic dissection that currently exists.
You can download the key NHSE AAD Toolkit documents here:
