NHS CRD Report 22: The effectiveness of interventions used in the treatment/management of CFS and/or ME in adults and children (2002) Bagnall et al

Split from NICE ME/CFS guideline - draft published for consultation - 10th November 2020


MEpedia states this on the page about the York Centre for Reviews and Dissemination - looks like Wessely had his sticky fingers all over this, which really shouldn’t surprise us at all...

“Professor Malcolm Hooper states:

"During the life of the Working Group, a systematic review of the literature was commissioned from the NHS Centre for Reviews and Dissemination (CRD) by the Working Group; the CRD is based at the University of York and is a sibling of the UK Cochrane Centre (part of the international Cochrane Collaboration), whose Director at the time was Professor Iain Chalmers, who, with Simon Wessely, was a member of HealthWatch. Set up in 1994, the NHS Centre for Reviews and Dissemination aims to provide the NHS with important information on the effectiveness and cost-effectiveness of treatments and the delivery and organisation of healthcare and it plays an important role in disseminating politically correct information throughout the NHS.
To no-one’s surprise, the CMO confirmed in writing that it was Wessely’s own database of over 3000 papers which formed the substance of that review upon which the CMO’s Report would depend for its “evidence”.

The team which carried out the systematic review of the literature had another team to advise them, since none of them had any clinical experience of “CFS/ME”; again, to no-one’s surprise, the key adviser on this “advisory” team was Simon Wessely, assisted by Anthony Pinching and Christopher Clark. At the time, Clark was the new Chief Executive of the charity Action for ME, who on his own admission knew nothing whatever about either ME, CFS or about the literature.[2]"”

https://me-pedia.org/wiki/Centre_for_Reviews_and_Dissemination

This looks like the “official” eventual report as it has an actual report number and is presented differently. It’s called CRD Report 22.
“The effectiveness of interventions used in the treatment/management of chronic fatigue syndrome and/or myalgic encephalomyelitis in adults and children” .

And, in an astonishing coincidence, if we look at page iii, who should appear at the bottom of the list of members for the “advisory panel”…

“Advisory panel members
Chris Clark, Action for ME.
Professor Allan House, University of Leeds.
Dr Harvey Marcovitch, Horton General Hospital.
Aileen McIntosh, ScHARR, University of Sheffield
Jill Moss, Association of Youth with ME.
Professor Anthony Pinching, St Bartholomew's & The Royal London School of Medicine and Dentistry.
Professor Simon Wessely, King's College Hospital.”

(Edited for clarity.)

 

One of the 'reiewers' selectors of the evidence to be considered in the ORIGINAL York review process was Simon Wessley....I have the paperwork and criticisms from the time here somewhere......NHS Centre for Reviews and Dissemination. Asystematic review of interventions for thetreatment and management of chronic fatiguesyndrome and/or myalgic encephalomyelitis. CRD Report 22. University of York, 2002


My posting crossed one above....!