OU2024 Presented Posters (12 abstracts)
Proposed prioritisation framework for the introduction of new medical therapies for weight management in the NHS
Luke D Boyle 1 , Christo Albor 2 , Oluwaseun Anyiam 3 , Piya Sen Gupta 1 , Claudia Coelho 1 , James Crane 2 , Georgios K Dimitriadis 2 , Robert Andrews 4 , David Hughes 3 , Iskandar Idris 3 , Tricia Tan 5 , Barbara M McGowan 1 & Kath McCullough 6
1Guy’s and St Thomas’ NHS Foundation Trust, London, United Kingdom; 2King’s College Hospital NHS Foundation Trust, London, United Kingdom; 3University Hospital of Derby and Burton NHS Foundation Trust, Derby, United Kingdom; 4Somerset NHS Foundation Trust, Taunton, United Kingdom; 5Imperial College Healthcare NHS Trust, London, United Kingdom; 6Ashford and St Peter’s Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust, Surrey, United Kingdom
Until recently, only two medications were licenced and approved by the National Institute of Health and Care Excellence (NICE) for weight loss, orlistat and liraglutide. Semaglutide 2.4mg was launched in September 2023. Both liraglutide and semaglutide belong to a class of drugs called GLP-1 analogues, also used in the treatment of Type 2 diabetes. Successful weight loss outcomes for GLP-1 analogues has led to increased global demand and shortages. In June 2023, a National Patient Safety Alert was published indicating that no new prescriptions should be initiated for either weight loss or type 2 diabetes. Currently, Wegovy® can only be prescribed within specialist weight management services, in accordance with NICE Technology Appraisal 875 (March 2023). Weight management centres have seen significantly increased referral rates, which have in turn led to longer waiting times for patients and increased workloads for already overstretched services. Unwarranted variation in access to these services and long waiting times, coupled with limited access to medication has resulted in concern expressed by healthcare professionals working within obesity services about how best to deliver care going forward and a request for guidance about how best to phase in medical therapies. With a growing need for national guidance on how to best manage the balance between resources, the clinical effectiveness of these treatments and public expectation, a group of UK endocrinologists and obesity physicians including the Royal College of Physicians (RCP) Obesity Fellows have developed a phasing approach. Given the broad eligibility, this proposed framework highlights patients who should be prioritised for access to these medications, such as those requiring rapid weight loss to facilitate time-sensitive treatment for otherwise life-limiting conditions, including but not limited to malignancy and organ transplant. This framework is aimed at healthcare professionals working within weight management services delivering medical therapies for people living with obesity; to offer some guidance until the supply of drugs can be delivered in an equitable and sustainable manner. It is intended that this framework will be revised according to emerging evidence. NHS organisations may wish to phase in availability of these medications in a tiered fashion as outlined.
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Obesity Abstracts
ISSN 2632-9808 (online)
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