Cheshire and Wirral partnership NHS Foundation Trust | Demonstrating the impact of evidence-backed innovation for improving patient outcomes

PCMIS Health Technologies Ltd have developed clinically proven Outcome Feedback to help Talking Therapy services dramatically improve recovery rates, reduce deterioration, and deliver more cost-effective care – without increasing clinical workload.

By embedding predictive analytics directly into routine care, services such as Cheshire and Wirral Partnership NHS Foundation Trust (CWP) have strengthened outcomes, improved clinical confidence, and enhanced patient engagement.

Overview
CWP serves a population of over one million people, with highly specialised services reaching a further two million across Cheshire and Merseyside. The Trust provides a wide range of mental health services, including a Living Well mobile health and wellbeing service, and is committed to delivering a consistent, high‑quality approach to care across all communities.

In 2020, CWP Talking Therapies (CWP TT) implemented the Outcome Feedback tool in PCMIS with the aim of improving patient outcomes, engagement and service efficiency.

Outcome Feedback offers clinically proven, data-driven insights that reduce patient deterioration by up to 73% in high-risk cases and 48% overall. It enables therapists to track patient’s session by session, automatically identify if a patient is not on track, allowing for early intervention, improved recovery rates, and enhanced collaboration, while reducing treatment costs.

Benefits of PCMIS Outcome Feedback

Early Risk Identification: The system flags patients who are “not on track,” enabling therapists to adjust care plans before a patient deteriorates.
Clinical Supervision Enhancement: Supervisors use real-time data to support clinicians in decision-making and identify cases needing to be stepped up.
Improved Patient Engagement: Visualising progress encourages patients to take ownership of their therapy.
Efficiency and Cost Savings: Studies indicate a reduction in required therapy sessions while maintaining, or improving, recovery rates.
Preventing Treatment Drift: Helps clinicians identify external factors that may hinder progress.

The Case for Change

Before adopting Outcome Feedback, clinicians relied heavily on patient self‑reporting to understand whether treatment was effective. While this provided valuable insight, the Trust recognised the need for a more proactive, data‑driven approach that could identify when a patient was not progressing as expected and enable earlier intervention.

This project aligned closely with CWP TT’s commitment to having a positive impact on evidence-based therapies and ensuring patients receive the right support at the right time.

Utilising Support and Training

The service adopted a measured approach, introducing services to Outcome Feedback gradually to minimise risk and avoid overwhelming teams.

"The training was very useful, and the quizzes throughout were a great way to check understanding. The flexibility to complete it in my own time around my PWP diary was particularly helpful."

Emily Haywood, Lead Psychological Practitioner, Cheshire West Talking Therapies

The online training module equipped CWP TT’s staff with the knowledge and clinical skills needed to use Outcome Feedback effectively in everyday practice. Through the course, participants developed a clear understanding of what Outcome Feedback is, the evidence supporting its use, how to integrate the tool into routine care, and how to respond when a patient is not progressing as expected. With 75% of the workforce now trained, CWP TT is building a consistent, data‑informed approach to monitoring patient outcomes.

Impact and Outcomes
Introducing a new process into an established system can be a strategic step forward and ultimately transformative. It involves navigating everything from managing user permissions and coordinating online training access, to ensuring staff feel confident and supported as they adapt to new ways of working.

The Outcome Feedback tool has enabled earlier, more meaningful conversations with patients, allowing clinicians to adjust treatment sooner and ultimately improve recovery and overall patient outcomes.

With fewer sessions required for each patient, more appointment availability was created for additional patients who need support.

The Outcome Feedback curves appeared automatically on the graphs page, making them quick and easy to access. Being able to view them for any client I was reviewing was particularly useful when providing supervision to other PWPs

Emily Haywood, Lead Psychological Practitioner, Cheshire West Talking Therapies

Outcome feedback trained vs not trained

Graph demonstrates the difference for RI/RR when clinicians are Trained vs Untrained in Outcome Feedback.

"It’s a benefit having the option to query whether the intervention type is appropriate much earlier than waiting for the standard Session 4."

Sophie McCready, Lead Psychological Wellbeing Practitioner, Central Cheshire Talking Therapies

Optimising Clinical Effectiveness and KPI Performance
With the confidence gained from saving valuable session time and supporting more positive patient outcomes, the service is now well positioned to benefit from future system integrations which incorporate Outcome Feedback. The inclusion of the tool creates a strong foundation, being integrated within the PCMIS Supervision Hub and Clinical Support Tools and including NHS England set KPI’s for Reliable Recovery and Reliable Improvement, enabling the service to further enhance quality, consistency, and clinical effectiveness.

Lessons Learned
The implementation of an Outcome Feedback tool has proven to have made positive impact on both the Service and the patients:

Having the Outcome Feedback tool at your fingertips equips services with reliably informed data to intervene with treatments sooner resulting in improved patient outcomes
Improved communication reinforces patient confidence
Less sessions required, opening up availability for other needed appointments
Having an available online training platform to manage internally provides services with a sustainable approach to onboarding, upskilling, and maintaining clinical excellence
Strengthens teams with new features, and opens up opportunities to include further system developments

Conclusion
Cheshire and Wirral Partnership Talking Therapies adoption of Outcome Feedback demonstrates how a considered and phased approach to implementation can strengthen clinical practice, and enhance patient care. By equipping staff with robust training, embedding data‑informed decision‑making into routine work, and building confidence in early intervention, the Trust has created a more responsive and effective treatment environment. The integration of Outcome Feedback has not only improved outcomes for patients but has also positioned the service to take advantage of future digital developments, ensuring continued innovation and high‑quality care across the region.

Acknowledgements:
Thanks to our partners at Cheshire and Wirral Partnership NHS Foundation Trust – Talking Therapies

Emily Haywood – Cheshire West Talking Therapies
Sophie McCready – Central Cheshire Talking Therapies

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