§ Mr. SwayneTo ask the Secretary of State for Health what estimate he has made of the costs of establishing the National Institute for Clinical Excellence. [93918]
§ Mr. DenhamThe cost of establishing the National Institute for Clinical Excellence was in the region of £734,000.
This figure includes accommodation costs for the Institute, costs of recruiting staff for the Institute and staffing costs of officials in the Department.
§ Mr. SwayneTo ask the Secretary of State for Health what constraints the National Institute for Clinical Excellence will be able to place upon a clinician's ability to prescribe. [93874]
§ Mr. DenhamClinicians are expected to take National Institute for Clinical Excellence guidance fully into account when exercising their clinical judgment. Such guidance represents the views of an eminent body of senior practitioners who have had the opportunity of carefully considering the available evidence. However, NICE guidance does not override a doctor's individual responsibility to exercise his or her clinical judgment in determining what treatment is appropriate and necessary for a patient.