From November 2012 changes will come into effect to  core data set items collected through the National Drug Treatment Monitoring System.  

The changes replace the existing intervention / modality coding with three separate components:

• the setting in which treatment is provided
• the interventions and sub interventions that make up the treatment 
• the time spent in treatment per week

By moving away from the current way interventions are recorded (a mixture of setting and intervention type), it will now possible for providers to record the full package of treatment and care being provided to a client.

For the first time, it will be able to reflect the basis on which prescribing treatment has been provided, for example whether it has been for assessment and stabilisation, maintenance, withdrawal or relapse prevention. The intervention types will be brought into closer alignment with the interventions recommended by NICE and the 2007 Clinical Guidelines, and in addition services will be able to demonstrate the recovery support interventions they are providing during and after structured treatment. Recording both intervention types and recovery support could be useful in helping to reduce re-presentation rates.

The changes reflect the comments made by the field during the public consultation last year, have been discussed by an expert working group and supported by the NDTMS Board, whose membership includes a representative of the Chief Statistician of the Department of Health. Changes cover both drug and alcohol structured treatment and will bring a number of benefits for providers, commissioners and the broader treatment system. They will not affect the headline figures that we use nationally and locally to record access to and the outcomes of treatment.

Further details on the changes that are being made are available here. NDTMS teams will be supporting providers in understanding the changes and preparing for it over the summer.

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