NHS NUMBER

The NHS NUMBER, the primary identifier of a PERSON, is a unique identifier for a PATIENT within the NHS in England and Wales.

Description

The NHS NUMBER, the primary identifier of a PERSON, is a unique identifier for a  PATIENT  within the NHS in England and Wales.

This will not vary by any ORGANISATION of which a PERSON is a PATIENT.

It is mandatory to record the NHS NUMBER. There are exceptions, such as emergency care, sexual health and major incidents, as defined in existing national policies.

The NHS NUMBER is 10 numeric digits in length. The tenth digit is a check digit used to confirm its validity. The check digit is validated using the Modulus 11 algorithm and the use of this algorithm is mandatory. There are 5 steps in the validation of the check digit:

Step 1 Multiply each of the first nine digits by a weighting factor as follows:

Digit Position (starting from the left) Factor:

1

10

2

9

3

8

4

7

5

6

6

5

7

4

8

3

9

2

Step 2 Add the results of each multiplication together.

Step 3 Divide the total by 11 and establish the remainder.

Step 4 Subtract the remainder from 11 to give the check digit.

If the result is 11 then a check digit of 0 is used. If the result is 10 then the NHS NUMBER is invalid and not used.

Step 5 Check the remainder matches the check digit. If it does not, the NHS NUMBER is invalid.

Further guidance is available from the NHS England  website at: NHS number.

Note: This was  e-GIF  approved for use in NHS England. e-GIF  and the Government Data Standards Catalogue   have been archived and are available for reference only.

Also Known As

This attribute is also known by these names:

Context Alias
Plural NHS NUMBERS

Where Used

Type Link How used
Attribute CANCER OR SYMPTOMATIC BREAST REFERRAL PATIENT STATUS references in description NHS NUMBER
Attribute COMMUNITY HEALTH INDEX NUMBER references in description NHS NUMBER
Attribute HEALTH AND CARE NUMBER references in description NHS NUMBER
Data Element NHS NUMBER is the data element of NHS NUMBER
Attribute NHS NUMBER references in description NHS NUMBER
Data Element NHS NUMBER (BABY) is the data element of NHS NUMBER
Data Element NHS NUMBER (MOTHER) is the data element of NHS NUMBER
Attribute NHS NUMBER STATUS INDICATOR CODE references in description NHS NUMBER
Data Element NHS NUMBER STATUS INDICATOR CODE references in description NHS NUMBER
Data Element NHS NUMBER STATUS INDICATOR CODE (BABY) references in description NHS NUMBER
Data Element NHS NUMBER STATUS INDICATOR CODE (MENTAL HEALTH AND MATERNITY) references in description NHS NUMBER
Data Element NHS NUMBER STATUS INDICATOR CODE (MOTHER) references in description NHS NUMBER
Data Set National Neonatal Data Set - Episodic and Daily Care references in description NHS NUMBER
Data Set National Neonatal Data Set - Two Year Neonatal Outcomes Assessment references in description NHS NUMBER
Class PATIENT has an attribute NHS NUMBER of type NHS NUMBER
Data Element PSEUDONYMISED NHS NUMBER is the data element of NHS NUMBER
Data Element PSEUDONYMISED NHS NUMBER (BABY) is the data element of NHS NUMBER
Data Element PSEUDONYMISED NHS NUMBER (MOTHER) is the data element of NHS NUMBER
Supporting Information Personal Demographics Service references in description NHS NUMBER