Abstract
As Chair of NICE, and President-elect of the RSM, it gives me great pleasure to welcome you to this supplement which is comprised of review articles commissioned by NICE as part of the development of its Medical Technologies Evaluation Programme.
Most clinicians use medical technologies as a routine part of the care they provide for their patients. Although assessing their basic safety and efficacy is an established part of the regulatory process, evaluating their clinical and cost utility is-by contrast-at a relatively early stage. Our aim is to support the use, within the NHS, of those innovative technologies which offer benefits to patients, and/or to the healthcare system, compared with current practice.
Through its medtech programmes, which use world-leading evaluation methodologies, NICE is at the forefront of helping decision-makers derive maximum value for the NHS; and we look forward to continuing to develop these programmes with clinicians, policymakers and industry. A dedicated stream, focussing on the Medical Technologies Evaluation Programme, will be an important component of NICE'S annual conference on 15-16 May 2012. This stream will run on the first day and topics will include involving patients in the development of guidance about devices, as well as discussions on how to be a part of NICE'S medtech evaluation process. More information is given at
I hope that, for clinicians who use any form of medical technology, this collection of articles will provide an interesting insight into the methodological and regulatory landscapes which are the backdrop to our programme.