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A summary of the one hundred and twenty eighth meeting of the
Human Fertilisation and Embryology Authority on 19 June 2003

Matter arising from the May meetings

The minutes from the two Authority meetings held in May were approved with some minor amendments.

Chair's Report

The Chair reported on a letter from the Minister thanking the HFEA for its work during 2002/03 and with detailed suggestions for future HFEA strategy. It was noted that the majority of issues are being addressed through the HFEA Business Plan 2003-2004. It was agreed that a consultation might be needed for the development of research licences so that cost options could be presented to the Department of Health.  Following increased collaboration with the NHS Confederation, the Chair reported that there were plans to develop briefings for Confederation members on the work of the HFEA, help commissioning bodies respond to NICE.  Also a report on the possible resource effects on clinics with the introduction of the EU Tissue Directive was needed. The Authority additionally requested a regulatory impact assessment for discussion in September.

Chief Executive's Report

The Chief Executive reported on a positive meeting with the NHS Clinical Governance Team which indicated that the HFEA would be permitted to access their programmes of work to enable the provision of training and support for some clinics.

A draft Memorandum of Agreement between the HFEA, the Commission for Health Improvement and the National Care Standards Commission was discussed. The draft is under consideration by all three organisations and will be brought to the Authority formally in September.

Sex Selection

Following analysis of responses to the HFEA consultation on sex selection, it was agreed that a draft report reflecting the Authority's conclusions on sex selection would be prepared for the July Authority meeting.

Information for patients

The Authority considered options to produce the Patients Guide in 2003. It was agreed that literature for patients must reflect the particular needs and expectations of patients, and that a Directory of Clinics should be produced in the autumn of 2003. It was also agreed that the HFEA should produce a resource in 2004 that would provide accurate data on outcomes of treatments and alongside information that would be in the Directory.

Access to HFEA data

Following discussions about the access to anonymised HFEA data, it was agreed that use of anonymised data could be very helpful to inform patients and clinicians of best practice. The Authority agreed that specific criteria would be used where researchers applied to use HFEA data in their research. 

HFEA inspectors

The Authority discussed a number of options relating to the recruitment of inspectors and how this function should be structured within the HFEA. It was agreed to recruit 1 or 2 full-time clinical inspectors and assess the benefit to the inspectorate within the HFEA.

Date of the next meeting

The date of the next Authority meeting was agreed for 10 July 2003.

Page last updated: 24 October 2011

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