guidelines

medicines optimisation: safe & effective use (nice ng5)

a practical summary of nice ng5: medicines reconciliation, high-quality medication review, reducing harm, and improving shared decisions and adherence.

last reviewed: 2026-02-13
based on: NICE NG5 (published 4 Mar 2015)

Common “quiet harms” to actively hunt

Frequently asked questions

How is NG5 different from NG56 multimorbidity?
NG5 is the medicines-safety and optimisation framework; NG56 is the broader care approach for people with multiple long-term conditions. In practice, they complement each other.

Transparency

This page is an educational, clinician-written summary of publicly available NICE guidance intended for trained healthcare professionals. It uses original wording (not copied text) and should be used alongside the full NICE source, local pathways, and clinical judgement. Doses provided are for general reference; always check the BNF/SPC.