We've created 2 practical resources showing how you can use evidence to improve care and services.
They offer practical support for people using our guidance and standards in their day-to-day practice, including:
- practical steps to improving the quality of care and services using our guidance
- principles for putting evidence-based guidance into practice
- how guidance and standards can help you.
Using NICE guidance to improve the quality of care and services
This guide sets out the most common steps taken when putting evidence-based guidance into practice. The steps are drawn from published literature as well as our work with:
- NHS organisations
- local authorities
- social care providers
- voluntary organisations.
Principles for putting evidence-based guidance into practice
This guide covers the main conditions needed to ensure a positive environment for change and help everyone deliver high-quality care and services.
It covers the following key principles:
- commitment to quality improvement
- effective leadership
- the right culture
- working together.
How our guidance and standards can help you
NICE guidance provides evidence-based recommendations developed by independent committees, including professionals and lay members, and consulted on by stakeholders.
NICE quality standards set out priority areas for quality improvement. They highlight areas with identified variations in current practice.
Commissioners
- assure your organisation that resources are being used wisely
- make sure that providers are offering high-quality care
- identify ways to save money or redirect resources
- target resources at the areas that need them most
- meet your statutory requirements
- shape the market for health and social care for the benefit of all service users
- use a common framework for solving problems and promote integrated care across sector or professional boundaries
- tackle health inequalities
Providers and practitioners
- understand what good care looks like
- design effective local protocols
- make professional judgements and prompt discussion with your patient, service user or carer
- save money or redirect resources
- deliver evidence-based education and training and continue your professional development
- provide evidence of good governance, risk management and performance
- identify priority areas for quality improvement using NICE quality standards
- use NICE guidance and quality standards to support continuous quality improvement
- benchmark and share learning with other providers or practitioners
- monitor progress or show compliance
- tackle health inequalities.
Policy makers
- understand what good care and health improvement provision looks like to inform policy development
- show areas for improvement
- show that evidence underpins your policy
- develop policies that raise standards and improve quality while giving best value for money
- promote economic and social well-being
- shape the market for health and social care for the benefit of all service users
- use a common framework for solving problems and promote integrated care across sector or professional boundaries
- tackle health inequalities.
Patients, service users and carers
- understand what good care or support looks like, so that you can feel confident in the care or support you are receiving
- ask questions about your care or support based on what you have a right to expect
- understand your choices and take part in decisions about your care
- know how to seek support as a carer
- play a part in improving your own health and wellbeing and in preventing disease.
Patient advocates
- use our guidance to support people using health and social care services to help them understand what good care or support looks like
- use our quality standards as a focus for quality improvement when working with others in a user group, patient or community organisation or local HealthWatch
- use evidence-based best practice recommendations for solving problems and promoting integrated care across sector or professional boundaries
- tackle health inequalities.