Clinical Guidelines & Healthcare Resources
Clinical guidelines provide systematically developed recommendations to assist healthcare professionals and organisations in delivering effective and evidence-based care. They are published by official bodies, specialty societies, and aggregators to support clinical practice, quality assurance, and governance.
The following resources can help you locate, understand, and use clinical guideline information relevant to UK healthcare.
Official guideline publishers
These are primary sources where guidelines are developed and maintained.
National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE)
NICE produces evidence-based guidance and advice for health, public health, and social care in the UK. Visit: https://www.nice.org.uk
NHS clinical guidance
The NHS publishes policy documents, pathways, and clinical guidance across services and conditions. Visit: https://www.nhs.uk
Specialty and royal college societies
Many clinical specialty organisations publish their own guidance and standards. Examples include the Royal College of Physicians, the British Society for Rheumatology, and the Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists. Explore individual society sites for condition-specific guidance.
Guideline aggregators & reference tools
These platforms provide structured access to multiple guideline sources and support clinical governance workflows for evidence-based practice.
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CliniSearch - UK clinical guideline search & audit tool
CliniSearch is a structured search platform that helps clinicians and healthcare teams locate current UK clinical guideline content from recognised bodies (such as NICE, the NHS, and specialist societies). It supports internal audit and governance workflows by organising guideline sources into a searchable, clinically valuable index that enhances access to up-to-date recommendations and quality assurance processes. -
Guideline Central
Offers a searchable library of clinical guideline summaries from multiple organisations and publishers.
How to use these resources
1. Identifying relevant guidelines
- Start with official publishers (such as NICE and the NHS) for guidelines specific to your clinical area.
- Use aggregators like CliniSearch and Guideline Central to quickly locate documents across multiple sources.
2. Contextualising guidance
- Review the issuing organisation's methodology and scope.
- Check currency (publication date, review status) before applying guidance.
3. Supporting governance & audit
- Organise guideline documents in a structured repository for your team.
- Document how and when guidance is applied in clinical workflows.
Best practices for clinical use
- Always refer to the official publisher's website or PDF for definitive recommendations.
- Use aggregated results as a guide, not as a replacement for primary source documents.
- For legal or governance decisions, cross-check guideline currency and update status.
Related resources
- Healthcare Resources FAQ.
- Clinical guideline search tips (internal link if you add one).
- How to evaluate guideline quality (internal resource).
- Policy and standards pages (internal navigation).
Next steps
If you have suggestions for additional resources or need help locating specific guidance, please contact us. Learn more on the About Whitehall Medical page.