Publication, Part of NHS Maternity Statistics
NHS Maternity Statistics, England, 2023-24
Official statistics
Comparison of data common to HES and MSDS
This is the eighth annual report on NHS Maternity Activity which brings together established HES data with data from the MSDS which is a maturing, national-level dataset which has some impact in terms of non-response from providers as they work towards establishing their reporting flows.
In April 2019, the MSDS transitioned to a new version of the dataset. MSDS v2.0 was an update to the previous data set that introduced a new structure and content, including clinical terminology, in order to meet current clinical practice and incorporate new requirements. This is the fifth publication of data from MSDS v2.0, therefore data from 2019-20 onwards are not directly comparable to earlier years. More information about the changes for MSDS v2.0 can be found here.
This section reports on the similarities and differences in terms of coverage and nature of reported activity between both data sets.
Both the HES and MSDS record some core data about each delivery and pregnancy including method of delivery, onset of labour, gestation at delivery and gestation at the first antenatal assessment / booking appointment.
Comparison of deliveries
The MSDS is a maturing data set and reporting coverage continues to improve. However it does not yet capture as many deliveries as are recorded in HES.
The proportion of deliveries in the MSDS compared to HES was 96.3 per cent in 2023-24.
In 2019-20, the MSDS transitioned to a new version of the dataset, meaning the MSDS data from 2019-20 onwards are not directly comparable to earlier years.
Deliveries by method of onset
The proportion of deliveries for each onset of labour method are different between HES and MSDS, which may relate to the HES data having a greater share of deliveries where method of onset is unknown. Both HES and MSDS show that the most common onset method is spontaneous and then caesarean.
Last edited: 2 January 2025 4:32 pm