National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence (NICE)
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15 years of NICE
The NICE Annual Review 2013/14 is now available and offers a snapshot of our work over the past 12 months, as well as a look back as NICE celebrates its 15th anniversary.
In our first year as the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence – our third name since we were established in 1999 – our main challenge has been to maintain and build on the relationships we have created with the NHS and local government in our clinical and public health programmes, and at the same time reach out to the social care communities with whom we will work.
To reflect our growing remit, the Annual Review microsite is structured by audience with content tailored for those working in secondary care, general practice, local government and social care, as well as information about how NICE engages with patients, service users and carers.
Of particular note this year was our updated guidance on familial breast cancer which marked a major shift in breast cancer care by recommending, for the first time, preventative drugs for women at-risk of developing the cancer.
We also published our 300th technology appraisal recommending the use of peginterferon alfa in combination with ribavirin to treat chronic hepatitis C in children and young people. The treatment can decrease the hepatitis C virus to undetectable levels, effectively providing a cure for a disease that affects around 200,000 people in England.
Our public health guidance has looked to tackle some of the biggest problems facing today’s society such as obesity, lack of physical exercise and smoking. In February 2013, we published our 50th piece of public health guidance on preventing domestic violence.
We also launched our first Medtech Innovation Briefings – a new product to support healthcare staff considering using new devices and other medical technologies. This covered a range of novel technologies: a device to cool the brain in patients who've suffered a heart attack, a system for measuring narrowing of arteries in people with angina, a hydrosurgery device for cleaning wounds and a test to diagnose kidney damage.
