How we fit with NICE, the BNF and your ICB
NICE guidance and the BNF are free to use in the UK, thorough, and the authority. Reasoning GP does not replace them. This page says plainly what each one is for, what we add, how to use them together, and which source wins when they differ.
The authoritiesWhat NICE, the BNF and your ICB are for
NICE guidance
NICE guidelines set out the recommendations for diagnosing and managing conditions in the NHS, with the evidence behind each one. Go there for the full detail and the reasoning behind a recommendation.
The BNF and BNFC
The British National Formulary (adults) and BNF for Children: the reference for doses, interactions, cautions, contraindications, side-effects, and use in renal impairment, pregnancy and breastfeeding. Doses are always the BNF’s.
Your ICB formulary and local guidelines
Your integrated care board and area prescribing committee decide the local choices: which drug or device is first choice, antimicrobial choices, shared-care arrangements and referral routes. These routinely differ from the national default.
These remain the authority, together with NICE guidelines and MHRA safety advice. Where anything on Reasoning GP differs from them, they win — see If guidance differs.
What we addBuilt for the ten minutes in the room
Reasoning GP is organised around what you do in a consultation, not around a topic list. Each page names the guidance it rests on.
Pathways that start from the complaint
Diagnostic pathways begin with what the patient brings — a symptom or an abnormal result — not with a diagnosis you have already made: safety first, then diagnose, refer and treat.
Browse pathways →One-page Snapshots
A protocol’s Snapshot tab puts act now, confirm, decide, treat, monitor, refer and safety-net on one printable page. The full protocol keeps the detail and the evidence.
Open protocols →Ready Prescriptions
Reference wording for common regimens — dose, duration and counselling as the cited guidance and the BNF state them. Check each one against the BNF/SPC and your formulary before use.
Ready Prescriptions →Lab results reference
What published UK guidance says at each threshold band for common blood and stool tests, test by test, with the source cited. There is no box for patient values.
Lab results reference →The Consultation Spine
Choose a presenting complaint (and a provisional diagnosis, if you are revising one) to see the red flags, history, examination, investigations, management and safety-netting the guidance lists, laid out as a structured reference. De-identified details only.
Consultation Spine →The SCA suite
The same reasoning in exam form: timed stations, marking against the three domains, AI patients and mock circuits. An educational simulation, not affiliated with or endorsed by the RCGP.
The SCA Guide →Cross-links
Each pathway, protocol and case links to the same topic in the other tools — and most protocols now end with a short “Also check” line linking to the BNF pages for their key drugs and to your ICB formulary.
Visible review dates
Every clinical page shows when it was last checked, when it is next due and which guidance it is anchored to. If a page has not been signed off, it says so.
How we keep content safe →Using them togetherReason here, check there
Use Reasoning GP to reason and act in the consultation. Check the NICE guideline for the full detail, the BNF or BNFC for doses and interactions, and your ICB formulary for local choices.
| Your question | Start here | Then check |
|---|---|---|
| What could this be, and what must I not miss? | A Reasoning GP pathway | The NICE guideline it names |
| What do I do now, and how do I safety-net? | The protocol or its Snapshot | The NICE guideline for the detail; your local pathway |
| What dose, and is it safe with their other medicines, kidneys, pregnancy? | The BNF or BNFC | The product SPC where needed |
| Which drug, device or referral route here? | Your ICB formulary and local pathway | Your practice pharmacist or medicines-optimisation team |
| Has a safety warning changed this? | MHRA Drug Safety Update | The Updates page here |
If guidance differsWhich source wins
If guidance differs, follow this order
- MHRA safety alerts and Drug Safety Updates take precedence on safety restrictions, contraindications and warnings, from the date of issue.
- Then NICE guidance.
- Then the BNF or BNFC — and the BNF is always the source for doses.
- Then local guidance — your ICB formulary and local pathways. Where national guidance leaves the choice open (which drug, which device, which referral route), your local pathway is the one that applies.
Reasoning GP sits below all of these. If a page here disagrees with them, follow them — and tell us, so we can correct it. Our full evidence standard is on How we keep content safe.
BoundariesWhat we are not
- Not a substitute for clinical judgement, your local protocol, or emergency assessment. In an emergency, call 999.
- Reference and education, not a medical device. Reasoning GP publishes educational and reference content. It does not make recommendations about an individual patient, and we make no regulatory claim of any kind. See the intended purpose.
- No patient data. Nothing on these pages needs patient details. Do not enter anything that identifies a patient into any tool on this site — Reasoning GP is not commissioned by your practice or ICB and is not an approved clinical system. See AI safety and data.
- Not a prescribing authority. Check every dose in the current BNF or BNFC before prescribing.
- Independent. Reasoning GP is not affiliated with, licensed by, endorsed by or produced in partnership with NICE, the BNF or any other guideline publisher. Linking to NICE and the BNF is for your convenience and does not imply that their publishers have reviewed or approved this site. Our pages are written from the primary published sources named on each page, not copied from any summary service.
LinksWhere to find them
- NICE guidance — nice.org.uk/guidance ↗
- BNF — bnf.nice.org.uk ↗
- BNFC — bnfc.nice.org.uk ↗
- MHRA Drug Safety Update — gov.uk ↗
- Your ICB formulary. There is no single national list of ICB formularies. Search for your ICB’s name with “formulary”, or ask your practice pharmacist or medicines-optimisation team. Not sure which ICB covers your practice? Find your local integrated care board on nhs.uk ↗. Outside England, use your health board’s formulary. Local pathway portals are listed on our Resources page.