What is Scan4Safety? 

Launched by the Department of Health and Social Care in 2016, Scan4Safety uses GS1 standards to identify every person, product and place in healthcare. 

In practice, this means using barcode scanning to capture information about which medical devices, medicines and other products are used for which patients, where and when. The resulting data can improve traceability, support clinical decision-making and reduce administrative work. 

As Georgina explains, common standards are essential to making this possible: 

"Without that, you don't have a common language." 

While Scan4Safety originally emerged from a procurement-focused programme, its applications have expanded considerably, including medicines administration, blood transfusions and other clinical processes. 

Improving patient safety through better traceability 

One of the report's most significant findings relates to the additional safety checks enabled by scanning. 

At Royal Papworth Hospital, more than 2,000 incorrect patient identity band scans were flagged before medicines administration over two years. As Phil acknowledges, this does not necessarily mean 2,000 medication errors were prevented, given the other checks already in place. However, it demonstrates the value of an additional verification step. 

The report also highlights how scanning can improve the speed and accuracy of product recalls. Rather than searching paper records to identify affected patients, organisations can use recorded product information to trace devices much more quickly. 

For Georgina, these benefits extend beyond preventing patient harm to supporting the staff responsible for delivering safe care. 

Giving clinical staff more time for care 

The research also identified substantial productivity benefits, particularly where scanning and inventory systems reduce the time staff spend on administrative tasks. 

 At East Lancashire Hospitals NHS Trust, dedicated materials management support took responsibility for stock replenishment in the emergency department, returning 168 hours of nursing time to clinical care each week – the working time of four full time nurses. 

Elsewhere, Leeds reduced the time required for one product recall from eight days to 40 minutes, while North Tees and Hartlepool identified affected patients within 17 minutes following an implant recall. 

Together, these examples demonstrate how better information can reduce time spent searching for products, checking records and managing stock. 

As Phil explains, the opportunity is to move necessary operational work to the teams best placed to manage it, giving clinical staff more time for patient care. 

Making the financial case 

Alongside safety and productivity, the report examined the financial benefits of Scan4Safety. 

Across the first 19 providers in NHS Supply Chain’s inventory management system programme, £15.3m in savings had been captured by April 2026. Other benefits relalised include reduced overstock, fewer write-offs, less waste, product standardisation and time released through more efficient processes. 

Analysis of National Cost Collection data found that providers with higher Scan4Safety maturity for medical devices had, on average, around 11% lower procedure-level costs for elective and day-case activity than those in the lowest-maturity group. The analysis found an association but could not establish that Scan4Safety caused the difference. 

Phil is careful to distinguish correlation from causation, but notes that this national finding is consistent with the operational improvements identified through the research. 

"The impact was so big that it was bubbling up to the top-down statistics as well." 

Where could Scan4Safety go next? 

Despite the evidence of benefits, both Phil and Georgina recognise that adoption remains uneven. Funding, competing organisational priorities and the need for dedicated leadership all influence how widely Scan4Safety is implemented. 

Georgina points to the importance of having people within trusts who can champion common standards across different programmes, ensuring that new technologies can connect with existing systems rather than creating further information silos. 

Looking ahead, the potential extends beyond hospitals. Community stock management, medicines in patients' homes, wearable devices and scanning capabilities within patient-facing technology could all offer further applications. 

For Georgina, this was one of the most striking findings: 

"The scope of the untapped opportunity is absolutely huge." 

The conversation closes by reflecting on how the latest evidence could support wider adoption – both by extending proven approaches to more organisations and by exploring new ways to improve care. 

Listen to the full episode of The PSC in Conversation to hear Phil and Georgina discuss the findings, the practical challenges of implementation and what the next phase of Scan4Safety could look like.

If you're interested in finding out more about Scan4Safety and how you could implement the programme in your organisation, The PSC and GS1 UK are hosting a webinar on Wednesday 25th November 12-1pm, chaired by Lord Victor Adebowale. Register your interest here. 

Read the full evidence report on Accelerating Scan4Safety for safer, smarter healthcare over on GS1 UK’s website.