Interventional procedures are used for diagnosis or treatment. They can include things like:
- making a cut or a hole to gain access to the inside of a patient's body, for example an operation or inserting a tube into a blood vessel
- gaining access to a body cavity without cutting, for example carrying out treatment inside the stomach using an instrument inserted via the mouth
- using electromagnetic radiation, for example using a laser to treat eye problems.
Our guidance considers if they are safe and work well enough for wider use in the NHS.
![A health care professional using endoscopy equipment](jpg/endoscopy.jpg)
New guidance needed?
Anyone can tell us about a procedure for consideration. We want to know if there are new or not well-established procedures that you think we should develop guidance on. You can also let us know about established procedures that need to be reviewed and updated.
For patients and carers
We publish a version of our guidance specifically for patients and other members of the public. It covers:
- what a procedure involves
- what recommendations we have made
- some questions you might want to ask your doctor.
Find these documents by clicking on the 'Information for the public' tab on each guidance page.
Get involved
We want to hear from you. You can get in touch with us to:
- register for updates on guidance
- find out more about the advisory committee - including how to attend a meeting
- comment on draft recommendations.
Contribute to our guidance
We welcome your views during the development of our Interventional Procedure Guidance. Our public involvement programme can support with any queries you may have on:
- sharing surveys with patients to hear what matters to them
- voluntary and community sector organisation contributions, such as patient evidence submissions and attending committee meetings
- responding to draft guidance consultations.
For further information, please contact pip@nice.org.uk.
OPCS-4 codes
We use OPCS-4.9 for the classification of interventions and procedures. OPCS codes, or a link to them, are displayed on the overview page of guidance.
IPG audit tool template
This tool is used to support the use of NICE guidance and monitor the safety and efficacy outcomes of interventional procedures.
Safely introduce new procedures into your practice
You should notify the committee in your hospital which oversees the introduction of innovation into practice (the new procedures committee).
If NICE guidance for the procedure exists, it should only be done in accordance with that guidance. This will require that:
- Clinicians have appropriate training and experience.
- Patients are made aware of the circumstances under which the procedure is being performed and are provided with the necessary written information about the procedure.
- Arrangements are made for data collection and clinical audits.
If NICE guidance for the procedure does not exist it should be notified to NICE and their opinion awaited. In the meantime, it should only be used in research, or in exceptional circumstances for individually named patients.
For more information, please read this updated process to oversee the safe introduction of new procedures.