A patient’s NHS number is unique and important in providing healthcare services. It can also help in providing all the detailed information about the treatment that the patient has received. It also helps in determining the type of care a patient will receive in the future.

It is also very important for health authorities to maintain precise records of patients, which can help to ensure that these records are matched correctly, when a patient goes for any type of treatment.

A program called 1,000 Lives Plus, which is a five year program, is already running across NHS Wales to improve safety of patients and decrease any possible harm to patients due to wrong identification.

If a patient is not identified properly, it can cause a lot of damage and delay in the treatment. It can lead to delay in getting correct tests and can also put the life of that patient in danger.

There is already a lot of evidence, which confirms that wrong patient records pose significant risks to patients. It is very important to identify patients correctly and it can also help in their treatment.

The unique NHS number is provided to a person either at birth or when someone registers with a GP.

The National Patient Safety Agency (NPSA) had recommended NHS to use the unique patient number to identify patients in the year 2009.