Volume Comparators - ADQ/STAR PU

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ID - NHSBSAGuest
Password - Password12345
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About this dashboard

Prescribing volume is a key indicator of medicines optimisation, but raw item counts can be misleading without adjustment for population demographics. The ADQ/STAR PU report in ePACT2 addresses this by comparing prescribing volume using Average Daily Quantity (ADQ) per Specific Therapeutic Group Age-Sex Related Prescribing Unit (STAR PU).

ADQ provides a standardised measure of the average daily dose for a medicine, while STAR PU adjusts for age and sex differences across patient populations. This combination allows fair benchmarking between practices, SICBLs, and ICBs, highlighting variation in prescribing that may warrant further review.

The report supports antimicrobial stewardship and other therapeutic areas by identifying outliers and promoting rational prescribing. Users can view trends over time and filter by therapeutic group, enabling targeted analysis.

The aim of this report is to encourage value-based prescribing by linking volume to demographic-adjusted need. It helps organisations assess whether prescribing levels are appropriate and identify opportunities for improvement. While the report provides valuable insights, it should be used alongside clinical dashboards and guidance to ensure that interventions do not compromise patient care.

Contact and feedback

If you have any queries regarding the data provided contact data services support If you plan to publish the data include the name of the dataset for reference (this ensures that the figures are not misunderstood or misrepresented).