How NICE is helping to build the role of the NHS on the global stage
Kevin Miles discusses how NICE International is working to shape and improve health and care systems at home and abroad as part of the NHS Consortium for Global Health.
Kevin Miles
senior lead - NHS Consortium for Global Health, Health Education England
The role of the NHS Consortium for Global Health (NHSC) is to foster health system-to-system dialogue by providing specialist advisory support to programme design and delivery. This includes monitoring, evaluation and cross-programme learning.
The NHSC was created in 2018 to support the government’s Global Better Health Programme, a prosperity fund operating in 8 partner countries in the Indo-Pacific, Latin America and Africa. Set up as a strategic partnership with the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office, it is co-hosted by Health Education England and the UK Health Security Agency and ensures a coordinated approach to sharing NHS and UK healthcare expertise on the international stage.
NICE International has been a member since its inception. NICE International has:
contributed over 400 hours of expertise
through 20 subject matter experts
delivered 36 knowledge exchanges
reviewed 30 products.
The NHS is facing unprecedented domestic challenges following the pandemic. But in the spirit of global collaboration and learning, the NHS must find the space to develop an ongoing programme of support for universal health coverage beyond our own borders.
A key highlight has been the relationship that NICE has built with the Philippines. Through workshops and virtual knowledge exchanges, NICE has shared its technical methods and governance processes for assessing health technologies and developing evidence-based guidance, quality standards and indicators. This included featuring on the hugely successful webinar Strengthening COVID-19 response in the Philippines through health technology assessment.
In its first 4 years of operating, the NHSC has evolved to provide a point of access to expertise from 11 of the UK’s national health organisations, including the major NHS executive agencies and public bodies. Each member contributes essential and complementary elements to foster government-to-government, peer-to-peer collaboration. Ultimately, the NHSC seeks to shape long-term NHS engagement that will contribute to the UK’s international development strategy. Through its active offer of support and collaboration, it will strengthen health systems and advance health protection, health equity and health diplomacy across the globe.