NHS England has recently issued statutory guidance to NHS Clinical Commissioning Groups (CCGs) on a range of medical and surgical treatments and procedures and expects these to be introduced by local CCGs and NHS Trusts over the coming months. These procedures NHS England calls Evidence Based Interventions (EBIs) and this is the second batch of procedures identified by NHS England following their original EBIs notified to CCGs in 2018/19.
NHS England has already undertaken a patient and public consultation on the criteria identified in these policies and there is very little scope to change them further. Although NHS England is making the criteria for these treatments’ mandatory (as a minimum – CCGs can elect to go further), Clinical Commissioning Groups are still required to inform and involve patients and members of the public. A suitable period of public engagement needs to be undertaken, therefore, but it must allow CCGs to meet the obligations laid down by NHS England.
One of the policies, Sacral Neuromodulation, is not included by NHS England in EBI 2 and is a new local policy for Lancashire and South Cumbria. Very few patients experience this treatment and all must travel out of the area to receive it, but as it is a local policy, feedback on the full policy, including its criteria, is welcomed.
Public engagement will take place for these policies over a 4-week period, to be completed by Friday 19 November.