Two new online databases have been launched by the National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence (NICE) to help support the implementation of its clinical guidance.
The databases were launched at NICE’s annual conference in Birmingham earlier this month and are aimed at supporting NHS trusts in implementing medical guidelines laid down by the organisation.
NICE’s implementation systems director, Dr Gillian Leng, said: “We’re looking at how the NHS can manage conflicting priorities and make clinical excellence a reality for all patients. These two new web resources support these aims and will help those with an interesting implementation to access a growing body of information on how NICE guidance is being implemented.”
The first database is focused on shared learning and contains examples of local implementation projects. It aims to share learning across the NHS and other organisations with responsibility for delivering public health programmes.
It currently includes over 30 examples of implementation initiatives from the NHS and other organisations, ranging from the implementation of specific pieces of NICE guidance by specialist services to organisation-wide implementation systems that ensure all NICE guidance is assessed and appropriate implementation plans are put in place.
The second database, called ERNIE [no known relation to the premium bonds computer], is focused on evaluation and review of NICE implementation evidence. This database provides a bank of guidance-specific implementation uptake reports produced by NICE as well as references to external studies looking at how NICE guidance is implemented.
The Uptake reports provide an analysis of data that is available at a national level from a number of sources. They compare the available data to the NICE recommendations and identify whether uptake appears to be in line with the guidance.
NICE conducts external studies, which are classified to show whether its guidance is being implemented according to the recommendations made by NICE by using the following descriptions:
• Practice appears to be in line with guidance
• Practice appears not to be in line with guidance
• Doubts about or mixed impact in practice
• Not graded, insufficient evidence to make assessment.
Dr Leng added: “Through the shared learning and ERNIE resources implementers can find out more about local projects, share ideas and good practice and even see national reports that help to set the context of implementation.
“By creating these two central repositories of information we can reduce duplication in workload and make the wealth of resource out there easily available to those tasked with the important job of putting NICE guidance into practice.”
The databases are fully searchable and are online now. NICE says it will assess up to 15 examples each month for inclusion in the databases.
Recent guidance from the organisation has included the possibility of stomach surgery for obese patients and prescribed inhaled insulin for diabetics.
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