Cardiovascular disease (CVD) is a clinical priority in the NHS Long Term Plan and to support local delivery of lipid management, the Leicester, Leicestershire and Rutland (LLR) Integrated Care Board Medicines Optimisation Team and Lipid Management Specialists at University Hospitals Leicester have worked collaboratively to develop a local Lipid Management Pathway. This was a transformational project aimed at allowing early access to lipid management treatments in primary care whilst ensuing easy access to Lipid Specialists support and guidance is available to primary care clinicians. This project was undertaken in four phases:
Phase 1: Implementation of NICE Inclisiran Technical Appraisal
Phase 2: Development of LLR Lipid pathway
Phase 3: Resources development
Phase 4: Training and development
Following the implementation of this pathway we have seen a steady increase in prescribing of lipid management treatments in primary care, including 1250% increase in Inclisiran prescribing and 1186% increase in Bempedoic acid prescribing across primary care since implementation of the pathway. Furthermore there has been an increase in the Advice and Guidance requests from Primary Care and Lipid Clinic referrals which are anticipated to be from the signposting in the LLR Lipid Pathway. This demonstrates that the approach taken for the implementation of this pathway has been successful in increasing easy access to newer lipid management options in primary care as well as creating capacity in Secondary Care Lipid Clinics to review more complex cases.
