History and structure
The National Coordinating Centre for Health Technology Assessment was launched in July 1996 to support the NHS Health Technology Assessment Programme funded since 1993 by the Department of Health's Research and Development Directorate. The NHS HTA Programme is the largest single activity funded though the NHS Research and Development Programme. NCCHTA supports the work of the HTA Programme in identifying and commissioning relevant technology assessment research.

Mission
The programme's mission is to help provide high quality evidence to inform NHS decision making. To achieve this goal, NCCHTA coordinates and manages the NHS HTA Programme. This involves assisting in the identification of knowledge gaps; providing scientific support for the prioritizing of research questions; assisting in the management of the research commissioning process; and making the results available to decision makers in the health service. The HTA programme has two key characteristics: it is needs-led and it is science-added.

By 'needs-led' we mean that the NHS HTA programme is driven by the information needs of those who use, manage, provide care in and develop policy for the NHS. Systems understanding those information needs are therefore central to the programme.

By 'science-added', we mean that the HTA programme adds knowledge value at every stage of its processes, ensuring that researchers meet the information needs of the NHS.

How NCCHTA works
NCCHTA works in three ways:

Commissioned HTA. NCCHTA runs a cycle that begins with identifying the areas of need by consultation throughout the health service and scrutinizing the recommendations of previous research. Topics identified in this way are then prioritized by expert panels. Research based on primary or secondary data sources is commissioned from health service or academic research organizations under each of the priority areas.

Responsive HTA. In 2006 the HTA programme launched a new responsive stream which funds research on topics proposed by researchers: 1) funding for pragmatic clinical trials of the sort already funded by the HTA programme, with researchers invited to submit outline primary research proposals on an ongoing basis; and 2) funding for research (primary, methodological or evidence synthesis) in specific themed areas, with calls for outline proposals on a biennial basis. The first themed call for proposals took place in 2005, in the area of Medicines for Children.

Call-off contract. This is a stream to support NICE guidance (both Technology Appraisal Reports and the new Single Technology Appraisals). NCCHTA commissions reports from seven contracted academic departments in the UK that provide the independent evidence base for NICE guidance.

NCCHTA encourages high quality research through a process of active monitoring of on-going projects and rigorous peer view.

Dissemination activities
NCCHTA has produced a monograph series (ISSN 13366-5278) to publicize and disseminate the results of research from the HTA Programme. Executive summaries and reports are available by direct mail, in printed format, on CD-Rom, and through the Internet at www.hta.ac.uk.

Current projects (a selection)

• Communication of carrier status information following newborn screening: descriptive study of current practice, methods and experience
• Inhaled corticosteroids and long acting beta2 agonists for the treatment of chronic asthma in adults and children aged 12 years and over
• Inhaled corticosteroids and long acting beta2 agonists for the treatment of chronic asthma in children under the age of 12 years
• Cardiac resynchronisation (biventricular pacing) for the treatment of heart failure
• Double-blind, randomised, placebo-controlled trial of nicotine replacement therapy (NRT) in pregnancy
• How far does screening women for partner violence in different health care settings meet the UK National Screening Committee criteria for a screening programme in terms of condition, screening method and intervention?
• Screening to prevent pre-term birth - systematic reviews of accuracy and effectiveness literature with economic modelling

Future plans
NCCHTA seeks to develop more effective ways to disseminate and communicate the results of research to decision-makers and raise the profile of the HTA Programme. A particular challenge is linking with other developments in the NHS in order to create synergy with organizations such as the National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence (NICE).