What is the Indicator Library?

The Indicator Library allows a user to search through almost 3000 indicators currently in use in health and social care.

When fully developed, the Library will be a searchable resource of all indicator definitions, derivations and the constructions. The Library will aid in consolidating existing indicators, as well as limiting the unnecessary development of new ones.

Why do we have the Indicator Library?

With 3000 indicators and such a diversity of organisations generating them, it is difficult to see which indicators are in use and/or available for any new emerging measurement need.

We understand that this is a problem and are leading the development of the first indicator library covering all known health and social care indicators.

What are the benefits of the Indicator Library?

The Library will be valuable to a wide range of people, but of particular relevance to those looking to establish measures for a service, theme or topic, and needing to research what might already be available or re-purposed.

For example, you might want to find indicators currently available for epilepsy. The Library would pull together the six in the Compendium of Public Health Indicators, the 4 from the Quality and Outcomes Framework and the two from NHS Comparators. There is currently no other tool available which enables a user to easily find this information.

We plan to develop the Library into a fully featured, web-based resource over the next few months. Specific developments include:

• example enhanced searching
• the ability to upload new indicators / information
• links to other associated materials.

Getting involved

You can download our first release of the Library below. We have made it available:

• so you can see the extent of indicators currently in use
• so you can give your views on the features and facilities that you would like to be built into the fully featured version, web-based version.

Please download this Library, use it, break it, get frustrated with it, but please provide us with feedback and suggestions to help inform its development.

Don't limit your feedback to the technical aspects – any thoughts you have on content are welcome; and we would also welcome your thoughts on what are the issues and problems that now warrant attention.

All ideas will be considered by our Indicator Development Board, which is overseeing our work on this important agenda.

• download the Indicator Library First Release. To download right click on this link and save the file to your computer, then run the application. The library will not run if the link is only opened and not saved (xls 7MB)
• download the Indicator Library User Guide (pdf 356Kb)
• download the Indicator Library Metadata Guide (pdf 409Kb)
• give us your feedback (IndicatorLibrary@ic.nhs.uk).