NICE

I have just read a news post of the PJ online about NICE having a judgement on a "new-ish" drug overturned by the high court. I used to work for a Pharmaceutical company as a Medical Rep for a number of years prior to studying Pharmacy.

The drug in question, I used to sell. I remember being at the launch of the drug at a large conference in London having Celebrity guest speakers and Gala dinners. I thought it sounded like the best treatment to come along in years for this specific disease area.

It was great to be involved in a new class of drug being launched in UK, learning about new modes of action and a revolutionary way to treat the disease. I could not wait to go out there and promote the drug to my local doctors across my territory.

At the time, there was no NICE guidance as yet on where this treatment was positioned although the drug had strong evidence to give it clear positioning in the market. I was quite surprised at the slow uptake of the doctors, being a bit conservative and reluctant to prescribe it, but I also understood, as it was new and not on the drug formulary.

Here I was with all this enthusiasm and energy desperate to see indirectly a huge benefit to a patients quality of life and of course a happy doctor pleased that he/she is happy with the drug treatment for the right patients.

NICE did give out clear guidance in due course on where to position this drug, which helped my local doctors have a clear idea on precisely when and where to use it.

Having been out of the Pharmaceutical Industry for the last 3 years it looks like more evidence has accumulated and hence the judgement being overturned regarding the decision that NICE had made on this drug.

As a Pharmacist in the making, no doubt I will be looking to NICE guidance frequently for all sorts of health and clinical practice issues. I had better become more familiar with their guidance as up until today I had forgotten about the level of expertise that NICE provides within the medical field.