Update 4 July 2019
The Common User Interface standards have been deprecated, as they are now out of date and should not be relied on as interface design standards. The decision to deprecate was made by the Data Coordination Board and the Notice below confirms this decision:
However, as there is still residual value in some of the data elements within the CUI standards, NHS Digital will be reviewing the standards to identify the design elements which remain relevant to ensuring patient safety. This page will be updated when more information about this review activity is available.
Deprecation of these standards is in line with the information contained in the current version of the standards framework under consideration by NHSX. The background to the decision is given below.
Background
During the tenure of NHS Connecting for Health (2005-2013), a need was identified for consistency in the display of common items and their layout on screens, driven by a desire to improve patient safety and to aid clinician effectiveness. The Common User Interface (CUI) project was set up to define a common interface for healthcare IT systems and nine standards were subsequently published in 2010:
- Address Input and Display
- Date and Time Input
- Date Display
- NHS Number Input and Display
- Patient Banner
- Patient Name Input and Display
- Sex and Current Gender Input and Display
- Telephone Number Input and Display
- Time Display
Since publication, the health and care technology landscape has changed considerably. It is now acknowledged that these standards are out of date. Nevertheless, there is still residual value in some of the data elements identified within them and it is the intention to review and identify elements which remain relevant to ensuring patient safety and continue to promote clinical uptake of health and care IT.
Read the blog post (link below) to discover more about NHS Digital's decision to withdraw the common user interface standards.