About the HTA programme

The HTA programme produces independent research about the effectiveness of different healthcare treatments and tests for those who use, manage and provide care in the NHS. It identifies the most important questions that the NHS needs the answers to by consulting widely with these groups, and commissions the research it thinks is most important through different funding routes. The HTA programme is a programme of the National Institute for Health Research (NIHR).

It provides ongoing help and support for the investigators it funds, before publishing their findings in its internationally acclaimed journal series, Health Technology Assessment. The journal’s 2008 Impact Factor (5.010) ranked it in the top 10 per cent of medical and health-related journals. Each year some 50 new studies are published, giving the NHS the evidence it needs to help deliver the best care.

The HTA programme is managed by the NIHR Evaluation, Trials and Studies Coordinating Centre (NETSCC). This is part of the Wessex Institute, at the University of Southampton. You can view/download the principles underlying the work of the NETSCC, HTA (pdf, 273kb)