Where to start
What are, and where can I get prevalence estimates?
Prevalence is a measure of the total number of cases in a population.
In order to understand the likely demand for COPD services in your area, the Eastern Region Public Health Observatory produce estimates of prevalence at PCT and practice level nationally. These are available to download from the ERPHO website.
Expected prevalence data can be compared to recorded prevalence using the figures reported in QOF. If the recorded level is low compared to the expected prevalence, this may indicate unmet need, poor recording, or that the general model overestimates due to local factors.
Comparing expected prevalence to reported is particularly useful for understanding the diagnosis part of the pathway. This can be combined with the information from QOF on confirmed diagnosis, to provide a good local benchmark of how well the population is being identified.
A quick way to produce these comparisons is to use the NHS Comparators tool. They have implemented a comparison using 2008/09 data, which can be viewed for each PCT and practice nationally. These comparisons are available within the Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease report set, on the commissioner view part of the site.
Further information