Which Solutions Are Best for Aligning Incident Reporting to PSIRF and LFPSE Requirements?

Over the last few years, NHS organisations and independent healthcare providers with NHS contracts have undergone a significant shift in how patient safety incidents are reported, investigated and learned from.

The introduction of the Patient Safety Incident Response Framework (PSIRF) and Learning from Patient Safety Events (LFPSE) marked a move away from a compliance‑driven approach towards one more focused on learning, improvement and safer systems.

In the case of PSIRF, despite widespread implementation from 2023, work is still ongoing and many trusts and independent providers are still refining their processes and adapting systems to ensure their incident reporting workflows genuinely support the aims of this framework.

This matters because the real value of PSIRF and LFPSE lies in enabling organisations to learn more effectively from patient safety events.

Patient safety teams, governance leads and risk managers must ensure the systems and processes used across the organisation truly support these frameworks.

This article explores what alignment with PSIRF and LFPSE actually requires, the challenges many organisations have faced, and the types of solutions that best support safer systems and meaningful learning.

Why aligning to PSIRF and LFPSE matters

The shift from NRLS and the Serious Incident Framework

For many years, patient safety events across the NHS were recorded through the National Reporting and Learning System (NRLS). This included serious incidents, which were managed using the Serious Incident Framework.

Whilst these approaches created valuable national insight, they also had limitations.

LFPSE replaced NRLS (which was decommissioned on 30 June 2024) as the national learning system for recording and analysing patient safety events, while PSIRF replaced the Serious Incident Framework and introduced a new approach to incident response.

Together, these frameworks encourage:

✔️ Better data to identify patterns and risks
✔️ Strengthening system-based improvement
✔️ A focus on learning rather than blame
✔️ More proportionate responses to different types of incidents

The intention is that safety events are captured consistently, organisations respond thoughtfully, and the healthcare organisations can learn faster and prevent harm more effectively.

What NHS and independent healthcare organisations must achieve to stay compliant

Under PSIRF and LFPSE, organisations are expected to show that they have robust processes in place for both recording incidents and responding to them.

This includes:

• Capturing incident data in line with national LFSPE requirements
• Submitting LFPSE information to NHS England (whether directly or through a Local Risk Management System (LRMS) like Radar Healthcare)
• Selecting appropriate response methods under PSIRF
• Demonstrating learning and improvement
• Providing clear governance oversight

Compliance is therefore not just about having an incident reporting platform. It requires systems and processes that support learning, analysis and improvement across the organisation.

Understanding the requirements of PSIRF and LFPSE

Although PSIRF and LFPSE are closely linked, they address different parts of the patient safety process.

What PSIRF requires from incident response and learning

PSIRF focuses on how organisations respond after a patient safety incident occurs and encourages a more considered and proportionate response.

As per NHS England, it’s four key aims are:

1. Compassionate engagement and involvement of those affected by patient safety incidents
2. Application of a range of system-based approached to learning from patient safety incidents
3. Considered and proportionate responses to patient safety incidents
4. Supportive oversight focused on strengthening response system functioning and improvement

In essence, the goal is to understand the reasons behind incidents better and identify improvements that can reduce future risk. In practice, this means organisations need systems that support structured reviews, learning responses and action tracking

It’s worth noting here that one of the things that makes Radar Healthcare’s software so good is their flexible workflow engine that helps organisations embed their Patient Safety Incident Response Plan (PSIRP) more effectively compared to more rigid quality management systems.

What LFPSE requires from data capture and reporting

LFPSE focuses on how patient safety incidents are recorded and shared nationally.

It provides a single system for capturing incident data using a standardised taxonomy. This structured approach allows the NHS to analyse trends and identify emerging safety risks across the healthcare arena.

For organisations, this means incident reporting systems must support:

• • accurate and structured data capture
  • alignment with the national LFPSE taxonomy
  • submission of incident data to the national platform
  • consistent data quality across teams and services

High-quality data is essential. If incidents are recorded inconsistently or key details are missing, the ability to learn from events is reduced.

Core challenges NHS teams face when aligning PSIRF and LFPSE

While the aims of these frameworks are clear, implementing them in practice isn’t always easy. The most common challenges NHS organisations might experience include:

🗂️ Fragmented or outdated reporting systems

In some organisations, incident reporting might sit within a system that’s isolated and disconnected from other areas of business – such as audits or risk management. This can make it difficult to marry national LFPSE requirements with local priorities and limits the ability to analyse incident data across the organisation.

📝 Manual processes that increase administrative burden

Where processes are not aligned with PSIRF workflows, teams may rely on manually trying to track investigations, learning reviews and actions. This creates huge administrative work and can make it harder to maintain oversight of patient safety activity.

📉 Difficulty achieving consistent data quality

Good learning depends on good data. If incident forms are complex, poorly structured or difficult for frontline staff to complete, reporting rates may fall or key information may be missing. This can weaken both local and national learning.

🔍 Solutions that only focus on reporting, not learning

Perhaps the biggest challenge is moving from just incident reporting to wider organisation-level learning. To support LFPSE and PSIRF effectively, systems must embed them both into their processes. Circle Health Group are a great example of this, having created a bespoke algorithm within the Radar Healthcare platform.

What “good” looks like: capabilities needed in a PSIRF and LFPSE aligned solution

When reviewing incident reporting platforms, there’s several things you need to consider to make sure you get the best available solution.

1. LFPSE-compliance from NHS England

The number one thing NHS organisations should look for is software that has passed LFPSE-compliance by NHS England and is on their list of approved providers (Radar Healthcare were the first provider to be accredited for LFPSE v6). This makes information sharing seamless, ensures compliance and reduces duplication.

2. Usability – both for frontline staff and senior managers

Incident reporting should always be as easy and intuitive for frontline staff as possible. Systems that guide users through structured form filling and workflows aligned with the LFPSE taxonomy and PSIRF ensure the right information is captured, improving data quality and the learnings from it.

3. Triangulation of incidents with wider safety data

True learning emerges when different sources of information are connected. Systems that allow organisations to triangulate incidents with complaints, claims, risk registers, audits and quality metrics can provide deeper insight into underlying safety issues.

4. Configurable taxonomies aligned with national standards

While LFPSE defines mandatory data fields, organisations will often need to capture additional local information. Configurable forms that allow both national taxonomy requirements and local questions to be included can support both national reporting and local governance needs.

5. Implementation and ongoing support

Once you’ve shortlisted some of the best systems supporting LFPSE or PSIRF implementation, a big thing to consider is their approach to implementation and ongoing support. This is important, particularly if the NHS update LFPSE or PSIRF requirements moving forward.

Why Radar Healthcare is a strong fit for PSIRF and LFPSE alignment

Many organisations have adopted incident reporting software to support the transition to PSIRF and LFPSE.

At Radar Healthcare, we developed our platform specifically to help healthcare providers manage incident reporting, governance and organisational learning within a single system.

Indeed, we were the first technology company to receive LFPSE V6 accreditation from NHS England.

This achievement recognised our in-house LFPSE and PSIRF expertise, our close collaboration with NHS England, and the work we’ve undertaken with our NHS partner organisations, in particular Milton Keynes University Hospital NHS Foundation Trust.

Beyond this, we believe our platform is one of the strongest systems available on the market for several other reasons.

LFPSE ready reporting and data structures that are completely configurable

Our platform supports structured data capture aligned with the LFPSE taxonomy, but also makes it easy to build in local requirements so teams can collect the information required for national reporting, while maintaining strong local oversight.

Configurable incident pathways mapped to PSIRF

We also support configurable workflows that allow organisations to map their incident response processes to PSIRF guidance. This helps teams document learning responses, manage investigations and track improvement actions in a structured and transparent way.

One interconnected system to support learning and improvement

Rather than treating incidents as isolated events, our software enables teams to link incidents to action plans and risk management. This helps organisations complete a thematic analysis of their patient safety data to get meaningful insights that lead to change and improvement.

Analytics dashboards aligned with governance needs

Our analytics dashboards allow governance teams to monitor incident trends, identify emerging risks and provide clear reporting to leadership teams. This visibility supports both organisational oversight and regulatory assurance.

Partnership approach to implementation (and comprehensive lifetime support)

Something as big as LFPSE or PSIRF deserves full attention before, during and after implementation. That’s why we put a whole sphere of support around you, from initial set-up to ongoing training, making sure teams are confident and at-ease using our system.

Evidence from NHS adopters

Several NHS trusts have already adopted Radar Healthcare to support their transition to LFPSE and strengthen patient safety governance. One of those is Guy’s and St Thomas’ NHS Foundation Trust, who share their experience of working with us here.

Steps for organisations to begin aligning reporting systems

For organisations still refining their approach, there are several practical steps that can support alignment with PSIRF and LFPSE.

1️⃣ Review current incident reporting procedures and organisational goals

Start by assessing how incidents are currently reported and managed across the organisation, and defining your own organisational goals. This helps identify gaps but also ensures you can still focus on any key risk areas relevant to your own local context as part of national reporting requirements.

2️⃣ Ensure your system supports LFPSE taxonomy and is flexible enough to adapt

Any incident reporting system you use should support the structured taxonomy required for national reporting and allow data to be submitted accurately to the LFPSE platform. It should also be flexible enough to adapt to any changes in regulations and support interconnectivity.

3️⃣ Map internal processes to PSIRF learning response requirements

Organisations should review how incident responses are selected and documented to ensure they align with PSIRF guidance and their local PSIRP. This includes defining learning response methods and ensuring teams understand when each approach should be used.

4️⃣ Prioritise staff training and communication

Successful implementation depends on staff understanding both the frameworks and the systems used to support them. Providing training and engaging staff early with feedback loops can help strong reporting rates and ensure high quality data capture.

Supporting better patient safety learning through more cohesive reporting systems

PSIRF and LFPSE represent an important evolution in how the NHS approaches patient safety.

Rather than focusing purely on reporting incidents, the aim is to strengthen learning, improve processes and ultimately reduce harm.

For organisations, achieving this requires more than policy changes. It requires systems that make it easier to capture accurate information, analyse safety trends and act on insights.

As NHS trust and independent providers continue to refine their approaches to patient safety, choosing the right incident reporting and governance software can play an important role in supporting these goals.

If you would like to learn more about how Radar Healthcare can help you meet your PSIRF and LFPSE requirements, get in touch with us or book a demo to see how everything works in practice.