Determining local service levels for the provision of IUDs and the IUS
Benchmarks for a standard population
Available data suggest that the standard benchmark rate for services providing intrauterine devices (IUDs) and the intrauterine system (IUS) is 2%, or 2000 per 100,000, of the female population aged 15-54 years per year.
For a standard primary care trust with a population of 250,000, assuming that around a third are aged 15-54 years and female (approximately 83,333 people), the average number of women requiring IUDs or the IUS would be around 1670 per year (that is, 2% of the female population aged 15-54 years).
For an average practice with a list size of 10,000, assuming around a third are aged 15-54 years and female (approximately 3333), the average number of women requiring IUDs or the IUS would be around 67 per year (that is, 2% of the female population aged 15-54 years).
This represents the number of women who may require IUDs and the IUS across primary and secondary care for contraception and for the management of heavy menstrual bleeding (HMB). It includes the number of women per year who require either new fittings or re-fittings.
The topic-specific advisory group advised that the use of IUDs and the IUS is most likely to be indicated in the female population aged 15-54 years. However, the female population aged 15-64 years has been used to calculate the indicative benchmark rate because of the availability of population data at general practice level and its use within the commissioning and benchmarking tool. Commissioners should therefore be aware that the indicative benchmark rate may slightly underestimate the need in females aged 15-54 years.
This service is likely to fall under the programme budgeting category 218X (maternity and reproductive health).
Examine the assumptions used in estimating these figures.
Use the IUDs and the IUS commissioning and benchmarking tool to determine the level of service that might be needed locally and to calculate the cost of commissioning the service using the indicative benchmark and/or your own local data.
Further information
Sources of further information to help you in assessing local health needs and reducing health inequalities include:
- Annex A of the ‘Commissioning framework for health and well-being' outlines the process and data needed to undertake a joint strategic needs assessment.
- Department of Health ‘Delivering quality and value - focus on benchmarking'.
- NICE ‘Health equity audit - learning from practice briefing'.
- ‘Delivering the 18 week patient pathway: 18 week commissioning pathways'.
- The 'No delays achiever' provides access to service improvement tools aimed at reducing time between referral and treatment.
- PRIMIS+ provides support to general practices on information management, recording for, and analysis of, data quality, plus a comparative analysis service focused on key clinical topics.
This page was last updated: 02 March 2012
- Services for the provision of IUDs and the IUS
- Commissioning a service for the provision of IUDs and the IUS
- Specifying a service for the provision of IUDs and the IUS
- Determining local service levels for the provision of IUDs and the IUS
- Assumptions used in estimating a population benchmark
- The commissioning and benchmarking tool
- Ensuring corporate and quality assurance
