Office of the Medical Director

The Office of the Medical Director, drives strategic initiatives to ensure the delivery of safe, effective, and evidence-based healthcare services across Wales.

Our department oversees a broad spectrum of activities aimed at optimizing clinical practice, policy development, and service delivery:

National Representation: We represent Wales at national forums such as NICE (National Institute for Health and Care Excellence), HTW (Health Technology Wales), AWMSG (All Wales Medicines Strategy Group), and RDAG (Rare Disease Advisory Group), advocating for the adoption of best practices and the incorporation of Welsh healthcare priorities.

Medicines Optimisation: We lead efforts to optimise medication use, ensuring safe, effective, and cost-effective prescribing practices across healthcare settings.

Clinical Policy Development: We develop clinical policies and guidelines based on the latest evidence and best practices to standardise and improve patient care.

Evidence Reviews: We conduct comprehensive reviews of clinical evidence to inform decision-making and guideline development.

Outcomes Development: We collaborate with stakeholders to develop outcome measures that reflect the effectiveness and quality of healthcare services.

PROMs and PREMs: We collect and analyse patient-reported outcome measures (PROMs) and patient-reported experience measures (PREMs) in collaboration with the Nursing and Quality Assurance team, to assess and improve patient experiences and outcomes.

Audits: We conduct audits to monitor compliance with clinical standards, identify areas for improvement, and drive quality assurance initiatives.

Advanced Therapies Strategy and Implementation: We develop and implement strategies to ensure equitable access to advanced therapies, including gene and cell therapies.

PET/MRT Programmes: We oversee programmes for Positron Emission Tomography (PET) and Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRT), ensuring timely access to advanced imaging technologies for diagnostic and therapeutic purposes.

Professional Regulation for Doctors: We oversee professional regulation for doctors within the Joint Commissioning Committee (JCC) team, ensuring adherence to regulatory standards and promoting clinical excellence.

Clinical Risk Management: We implement strategies to identify, assess, and mitigate clinical risks to ensure patient safety and quality of care.

All Wales IPFR Advice: We provide advice and guidance on Individual Patient Funding Requests (IPFRs) to ensure fair and consistent decision-making across Wales.

Service Reviews: We conduct comprehensive reviews of healthcare services to assess performance, identify areas for improvement, and inform resource allocation decisions.

Prioritisation: We prioritise healthcare interventions and services based on clinical need, cost-effectiveness, and health outcomes.

Clinical Impact Assessment Group Support: We provide support to Clinical Impact Assessment Groups, ensuring that new healthcare interventions are assessed and implemented effectively.

We are committed to driving innovation, quality improvement, and the delivery of patient-centered care. Through collaboration with stakeholders, evidence-based decision-making, and continuous evaluation, we strive to achieve the best possible outcomes for patients and communities across Wales.