Screening in health care has grown rapidly in recent years, and has taken on a far higher profile than was previously the case.  The number of screening tests widely available has significantly increased.  There is also a widely-held expectation that screening leads to better health outcomes.  But, screening has the potential to cause harm, as well as to result in benefits.  There is a need for independent advice that draws on a variety of points of view, and makes full use of the evidence that is accumulating.

Background to the National Screening Advisory Committee

In 2002, the National Health Committee (NHC) identified the wide range of screening currently undertaken in the health sector, and proposed that there should be a specific body charged with making decisions about potential and existing screening, and overseeing screening in New Zealand.¹

The National Screening Unit (NSU), a separate unit of the Ministry of Health, also identified the need for a national screening advisory body.

In addition, the Minister's Cancer Control Strategy recognises the need for a national advisory committee on cancer screening.² 

The Ministry of Health examined options for such a body and recommended that a screening advisory committee should be established, reporting to the Director-General of Health. The Minister of Health subsequently endorsed the establishment of a screening advisory committee along these lines.

Role of the Committee

The National Screening Advisory Committee (NSAC) advises the Director-General of Health on screening policy and practice, including cancer screening and genetic screening, by:

• providing advice on screening practice (including its effectiveness, feasibility, value for money, likely harms and benefits, and impact on the health care system)
• providing advice on social and ethical considerations in screening, including cultural considerations, and reducing inequalities both in access to screening and in outcomes of screening
• providing advice on the systems needed in order to monitor the quality, including safety and effectiveness, of screening in New Zealand
• provide advice on ways screening practice in New Zealand can maximise benefit and minimise harm
• provide advice on the level of resources needed for high-quality screening.

¹ National Health Committee. 2003. Screening to Improve Health in New Zealand: criteria to assess screening programmes. Wellington: National Health Committee.

² Ministry of Health. 2003. The New Zealand Cancer Control Strategy. Wellington: Ministry of Health.