TY - JOUR T1 - Fantoms JF - Archives of Disease in Childhood - Fetal and Neonatal Edition JO - Arch Dis Child Fetal Neonatal Ed SP - F1 LP - F1 DO - 10.1136/adc.2009.179952 VL - 95 IS - 1 A2 - Stenson, Ben Y1 - 2010/01/01 UR - http://fn.bmj.com/content/95/1/F1.abstract N2 - Several important papers in this month’s issue highlight the value of collaborating to collect and analyse routine clinical data. 14 neonatal units in Ireland and Northern Ireland participate in the Vermont Oxford Network (VON). This has permitted the first all Ireland international benchmarking report in any medical specialty. Murphy et al compare the outcomes of almost 3000 very low birth weight (VLBW) infants cared for in Ireland and Northern Ireland from 2004–2007 with the 192 000 VLBW infants in the VON. Overall mortality was not significantly different, although survival in the most immature infants with birth weight less than 750g was consistently higher in VON infants. Chronic lung disease rates were higher in VON infants. The rate of bloodstream sepsis due to coagulase negative staphylococci in infants in Ireland and Northern Ireland (25–26%) was consistently double that observed in VON infants (12–13%). The authors highlight the need for a focussed quality improvement … ER -