The GP using first hand experience to influence NICE guidelines

“I always wanted to be a doctor, and it’s such a privilege and a joy to be a GP and to work for the NHS,” says Bryony Kendall.

“It allows you to be professionally kind, which is such a lovely thing to be able to do for people. It’s also an intellectual challenge because you never know who is going to walk through the door.”

Kendall was a partner in a GP surgery in north Liverpool for 20 years. Following the covid-19 pandemic she took on a safeguarding role for the NHS Cheshire and Merseyside integrated care board while continuing to do GP sessions.

During her career, Kendall has developed a special interest in maternity inequalities. She was an independent GP on the Maternity Disparities Taskforce, which was set up by the previous government to investigate poor outcomes for women from ethnic minorities and those living in deprived areas.

“Maternal disparities is a matter that is dear to my heart and when a colleague forwarded me an advert from the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence looking for someone to sit on their women’s health committee I thought, ‘Let’s give it go’.”

Kendall says the NICE role is demanding. “I was surprised by how hard it is. It’s mentally challenging. The days are really long and because meetings are all online I find I really have to concentrate. We don’t meet in person but the chair, Sarah Fishburn, is brilliant.”

Kendall adds, “The role involves a lot of maths and, although I did that for A levels and enjoyed it, it all feels a bit new and I’m using my brain in a different way.”

Despite the demands, she says the work is incredibly worthwhile and focuses on practicalities. “The great thing is that when I’m working with NICE on the guidelines, I can constantly bring it back to patients I’ve seen in real life and think, ‘Is this pathway going to work for them? Is this going to work for my colleagues when they see someone? Is this just too abstract? What do we actually want to know? How do we make life better for the professionals in order to make life better for patients?’”

She adds, “NICE have been extraordinarily open to feedback about how it can work best with busy GPs and how it can channel the guidance in order to help patients.”

She says that she highly recommends that doctors get involved with NICE and adds, “I now regularly look at the adverts and send them out to the people in my life and say, ‘Have you thought about this?’

“NICE is not looking for professors of general practice—it’s looking for people who work on the ground, who have practical insights. You don’t have to be hugely academic. I would never have considered it unless someone had suggested it to me. It’s one of the best things I’ve done, and I’m meeting different people who really value general practice. I’m proud to represent my profession.”