Posted by JahL on July 26, 2006, at 13:23:55
In reply to New NICE guidelines on bipolar (UK), posted by capricorn on July 26, 2006, at 4:38:29
> http://www.nice.org.uk/page.aspx?o=346153
The laptop I'm borrowing doesn't like PDF files, but I imagine their guidelines are typically cautious, with an over-emphasis on psychotherapy.
Anyway, I just wanted to point out to anyone that's at all interested, that NICE is a national disgrace. NICE is effectively a rationing body. Set up ostensibly to evaluate new medications, it really follows a cost-cutting agenda. It's a bunch of Labour-lackey, bean-counting quangocrats whose seemingly arbitrary decisions cause immense pain and suffering.
An excellent example of this is a story in today's Mail:
"Bone cancer victims in England will not be given a life-prolonging drug - although it is available to patients in Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland.
The drug, Velcade, which can put the cancer into remission and dramatically improve life expectancy, ***is also available in every other developed country in the world***.
But yesterday the National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence refused to approve Velcade for use in England on the NHS, saying it is not 'cost-effective'. "
Perhaps more relevant to this board is NICE's disgraceful decision to withdraw cheap and effective drugs for Alzheimers sufferers on the grounds of cost:"Thousands of Alzheimer's sufferers will be denied drugs which cost as little as £2.50 a day.
The National Institute for Clinical Excellence (NICE) has ruled that Aricept, Exelon and Reminyl can only justifiably be given to those with moderate Alzheimer's. ***It will be denied to those in the early and later stages of the disease***. "
Few in the UK would disagree that our elderly are treated appallingly and this is further, damning evidence.Clinical excellence? Yeah right.
NICE isn't nice.
Cheers,
J.
poster:JahL
thread:670612
URL: http://www.dr-bob.org/babble/20060724/msgs/670768.html