Québec, Canada
The vision that guides the activities of INESSS is one of openness, partnership and collaboration.
– Dr. Luc Boileau, Interim CEO, Director, INESSS
History and Structure
The Institut national d’excellence en santé et en services sociaux (INESSS) is an independent organization that reports to Québec's Minister of Health and Social services. It is composed of health and social service professionals, researchers, clinicians and managers, all driven by the pursuit of clinical excellence on behalf of the Québec population.
INESSS was created on January 19, 2011 from the merging of the Conseil du médicament and the Agence d’évaluation des technologies et des modes d’intervention en santé (AETMIS).
Mission
INESSS’s mission is to promote clinical excellence and the efficient use of resources in the field of health and social services. At the heart of its mission, INESSS assesses, in particular, the clinical advantages and costs of health technologies, medications and interventions used in the fields of health care and social services.
In addition, INESSS issues recommendations concerning adoption, use and coverage by the public plan of health technologies and services. It also develops clinical practice guidelines in order to ensure optimal use of health and social service resources.
As part of its mission, INESSS blends the perspectives of health professionals and managers, patients and beneficiaries of the health and social services network. It aims to bring together knowledge and know-how from relevant sources in order to shape them in a way that is useful to achieving clinical excellence and efficient use of resources. INESSS also contributes to rallying the different stakeholders involved in improving the health service provision. INESSS acts with a constant concern for equity and ethics.
How INESSS Works
INESSS is governed by a Board of Directors of 11 members, appointed by the government of Québec. The Board of Directors determines INESSS’s strategic directions and sees to their implementation.
INESSS may perform assessments, after consultations with other stakeholders of the health care and social services’ network; or at the request of the Ministry of Health and Social Services. HTA requests are assessed and prioritized by INESSS’ advisory board (Table de concertation), which consists of professionals and managers from the health and social care sectors, patient organizations, the Ministry of Health and Social Services, and the Régie de l'assurance maladie du Québec. Assessment reports are conducted by INESSS, often in collaboration with other HTA units in the network. Upon the completion, the assessment is submitted to the scientific committee for technologies in the health and social services sector (Comité scientifique permanent en santé et en services sociaux), and then to the Board of Directors for formal approval of the final content and recommendations.
The standing scientific committee is composed of scientists, clinicians, ethicists, managers and members of the general public.
INESSS also issues recommendations concerning adoption, use and coverage of medications by the public plan, at a frequency of three times a year. Drug product registration applications are submitted by the manufacturer then assessed and appraised by INESSS and members of the scientific committee for drug listing (Comité scientifique permanent de l'évaluation des médicaments aux fins d'inscription). The committee consists of physicians, pharmacists , pharmacoeconomics specialists, ethicists as well as citizen members. External experts may also be consulted. The committee submits its report to the INESSS Board of Directors, which ratifies the recommendations that are to be made to the Minister of Health and Social Services.
Dissemination Activities
In order to promote knowledge dissemination, INESSS calls upon practitioners, administrators, decision-makers, users and citizens. This collaboration is essential for a quick and efficient diffusion and implementation of good clinical practices and advancements in health care and social services. To that end, INESSS engages different stakeholders throughout the evaluation process of drugs, technologies and practices it oversees. The organization's vision of knowledge transfer is based on AETMIS and Conseil du medicament’s past experiences. Knowledge transfer at INESSS is an iterative exchange with the different stakeholders throughout the evaluation process. With this exchange, INESSS is better positioned to contextualize the results of the scientific assessments it undertakes while maintaining objectivity through specific measures.
INESSS is also actively involved in developing dissemination tools.
Current & Future Projects
Information on current and upcoming projects may be obtained from the INESSS web site (www.inesss.qc.ca).
Future Plans
INESSS promotes and supports the development of an HTA provincial network that brings together all of its players in the Québec health-care system, especially by chairing an HTA committee in the Integrated University Hospital Networks (RUIS) and facilitating the coordination of assessments at these institutions. INESSS is also actively involved in developing an HTA network in the field of social services. This is strengthening the Québec health and social care system's assessment resources and its ability to marshal evidence in decision making at all levels.
Agency Information
Country: Canada
Description of population served: Province of Quebec
Population served (mil): 8
Current HTA budget (mil USD): 12
Permanent staff: Over 100
Consultants: Variable
Ongoing TA projects: Variable
Contact information
Director: Dr. Luc Boileau, Interim CEO
Contact person: Dr. Michèle de Guise
Institut national d'excellence en santé et en services sociaux
2535, boulevard Laurier, 5th Floor
G1V 4M3 Québec, QC Canada
Tel: +1 418-643-1399
Fax: +1 418-644-8120
Internet: http://www.inesss.qc.ca
Email: