D06. Specialised Ear and Ophthalmology Services
Scope
This Clinical Reference Group (CRG) covers specialised ear surgery and specialised ophthalmology services.
Membership
Chair: James Tysome, Consultant ENT Surgeon at Cambridge University Hospitals
Recruitment to this CRG is in progress and the names of the members will be updated shortly.
Products
A key part of the CRG’s work is the delivery of the ‘products’ of commissioning. These are the tools used by the 10 Hub Commissioning Teams to contract services on an annual basis.
Service Specifications
Service specifications are important in clearly defining the standards of care expected from organisations funded by NHS England to provide specialised care. The specifications have been developed by specialised clinicians, commissioners, expert patients and public health representatives to describe both core and developmental service standards. Core standards are those that all funded providers should be able to demonstrate, with developmental standards being those which may require further changes in practice over time to provide excellence in the field.
The following service specifications fall within the scope of this CRG:
- Auditory Brainstem Implant
- Specialised Ear Surgery: Cochlear Implants (All Ages)
- Implantable Hearing Aids for Microtia, Bone Anchored Hearing Aids and Middle Ear Implants (All Ages)
- Specialised Ophthalmology (Adult)
- Specialised Ophthalmology (Paediatrics)
- Ocular oncology service (Adults and Adolescents)
- Ophthalmic pathology service (All Ages)
- Osteo-odonto-keratoprosthesis service for corneal blindness (Adult)
- National Artificial Eye Service (All Ages)
Policies
A commissioning policy is a document that defines access to a service for a particular group of patients. A NICE Technology Appraisal Guideline on the same topic will replace, or be incorporated into, a commissioning policy as appropriate. These are important documents that are developed to ensure consistency in access to treatments nationwide.
The following policies fall within the scope of this CRG:
Commissioned:
- Keratoprosthesis for corneal blindness (all ages)
- Auditory brainstem implant with congential abnomalities of the auditory nerves of cochleae
- Bone Anchored Hearing Aids
- Adalimumab Patient Information Leaflet
- Bone conducting hearing implants (BCHIs) for hearing loss (all ages)
Not routinely commissioned:
- Argus II retinal prosthesis
- Infliximab (Remicade) as Anti-TNF Alpha Treatment Option for Paediatric Patients with Severe Refractory Uveitis
Policy statements
Policy statements are brief documents that define the current commissioning position to support service contracting. They are interim documents for use while a full commissioning policy is being developed or until a formal NICE Technology Appraisal Guideline has been published.
The following policy statements fall within the scope of this CRG: