> Latest adoption audit report shows HTW guidance is having an impact across Wales
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20 November, 2024

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Latest adoption audit report shows HTW guidance is having an impact across Wales

 

We are pleased to announce the publication of our 2023/24 Adoption Audit Report.

 

This year we audited 11 pieces of HTW guidance and three pieces of NICE Medical Technologies Evaluation (MTEP) guidance.

The audit achieved the best response rate to date and revealed high levels of awareness of HTW guidance.

 

Meanwhile, nearly all audit responses received indicated that HTW and NICE MTEP guidance recommendations were clear.

There were partial responses to the audit from two of the seven health boards and full responses from four other health boards, NHS Wales Joint Commissioning Committee (NWJCC – formerly Welsh Health Specialised Services Committee), Welsh Ambulance Services University NHS Trust (WAST) and Velindre University NHS Trust.

 

Key findings from the adoption audit  include the following:

  • Responses from organisations where the guidance was relevant indicate that awareness of the guidance is high (79%), clarity of guidance recommendations is very good (96%), and guidance is having an impact in the majority of cases (72%). These figures are consistent with, or an improvement on last year’s audit.
  • While the clarity of the guidance was reported as high, there were some instances where organisations did not fully understand the remit of HTW guidance. There were comments around the lack of information on where funding and extra resources would come from, and questions around implementation of the technology, which is not within the remit of HTW guidance.
  • Generally, HTW guidance that recommends routine adoption of a technology was adhered to. Though there were a few examples where organisations had not adhered to the recommendation or were unsure if they would.
  • For HTW guidance that “partially supports” routine adoption, organisations generally either did not feel the guidance was sufficient to change commissioning policy or clinical practice, or were unsure.
  • All three pieces of NICE guidance audited recommended the use of a technology. The impact on decision-making of the three pieces of guidance was variable, ranging from no impact to major impact.

 

Judith Paget, Director General for Health and Social Services and NHS Wales Chief Executive, said:

“HTW plays an important role in helping to ensure that the most effective and cost-effective health technologies are available to the people of Wales.  This report clearly demonstrates the significant impact HTW’s guidance is having within our healthcare sector. It is also really pleasing to hear that this audit achieved the highest response rate so far, which demonstrates the continuous improvements being made to the HTW adoption audit process.”

 

Susan Myles, Director of Health Technology Wales, said:

“Our latest adoption report shows just how much of an impact our guidance is having across Wales. We would like to take this opportunity to thank our partners for their continued support of our work and their valuable contributions to the adoption audit.”

 

Following the completion of the audit, we have concluded that we should continue to engage closely with local health boards and specialised trusts to maximise adoption audit returns and also consider how the process can be extended to other commissioners.

We will also review the adoption audit questions with a view to providing more detailed guidance notes and ensuring questions are as clear as possible. In future, adoption audit respondents should only have to answer appropriate questions depending on the relevance of the guidance to their organisation.

To read the HTW 2023/24 Adoption Audit Report in full click here.