Federal Register, Vol. 63, No. 70, page 18027
Date: April 13, 1998
Agency: Agency for Health Care Policy and Research, HHS
Action: Notice
Summary: The Agency for Health Care Policy and Research
(AHCPR) invites organizations, professional societies, and
other developers of clinical practice guidelines to submit
completed guidelines for inclusion in the World Wide Web-based
National Guideline Clearinghouse™ (NGC).
AHCPR, in partnership with the American Association of
Health Plans (AAHP) and the American Medical Association
(AMA), is sponsoring the development of the NGC to promote
widespread access to guidelines by the health care community
and interested individuals. The NGC is designed to be a
comprehensive database of clinical practice guidelines.
Availability on the Web is scheduled for Fall 1998.
Data on each guideline will include: 1) a structured abstract
containing information about the guideline and its
development; (2) a comparison of guidelines covering similar
topics, showing areas of similarities and differences; and (3)
the full text of the guideline (when available) or links to
full text (when not) and information on how to obtain the full-text guideline. In addition, the NGC will have a topic-related electronic mail forum for
registered users to exchange
information on clinical practice guidelines, their
development, implementation, and use.
Dates: Guidelines will be received on an ongoing basis by
ECRI at the address below. ECRI, a nonprofit health services
research organization, will perform the technical work of the
NGC, under contract with AHCPR.
Addresses: Organizations interested in contributing to the
NGC should submit two hard copies of each guideline and
related background information in typed format and electronic
(if available), including name, address, phone, and E-mail
address of a contact person to: Vivian Coates, NGC Project
Director, ECRI, 5200 Butler Pike, Plymouth Meeting, PA 19462-1298.
For further information, contact:
Jean Slutsky, NGC Project
Officer
Center for Practice and Technology Assessment
Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality
540 Gaither Road, 6th Floor
Rockville, MD 20850
Telephone: (301) 427-1600
E-mail: JSlutsky@ahrq.gov
Supplementary Information
Background
Under Title IX of the Public Health Service Act (42 U.S.C.
299-299c-6), AHCPR is charged with enhancing the quality,
appropriateness, and effectiveness of health care services and
access to such services. AHCPR accomplishes these goals
through scientific research and through promotion of
improvements in clinical practice, including prevention of
diseases and other health conditions, and improvements in the
organization, financing, and delivery of health care services.
Increased interest in improving the quality of health care,
reducing uncertainty and unnecessary variability in health
care decisionmaking, as well as rising health care costs,
have stimulated a marked growth over the past 5 years in the
development and use of clinical practice guidelines. Yet,
many health providers, plans, systems, and purchasers have
difficulty gaining access to and keeping abreast of the many
clinical practice guidelines now available.
Clinical Practice Guideline Definition
The NGC employs the definition of clinical practice guideline
developed by the Institute of Medicine:
"Clinical practice guidelines are systematically
developed statements to assist practitioner and patient
decisions about appropriate health care for specific
clinical circumstances."
[Institute of Medicine (1990). Clinical Practice
Guidelines: Directions for a New Program,
M.J. Field and
K.N Lohr (eds.) Washington, DC: National Academy Press
(page 38).]
Criteria
A clinical practice guideline must meet all of the following
criteria to be included in the NGC:
- The clinical practice guideline contains systematically
developed statements that include recommendations,
strategies, or information that assists physicians and/or
other health care practitioners and patients make
decisions about appropriate health care for specific
clinical circumstances.
- The clinical practice guideline was produced under the
auspices of medical specialty associations; relevant
professional societies, public or private organizations,
government agencies at the Federal, State, or local
level; or health care organizations or plans. A clinical
practice guideline developed and issued by an individual
not officially sponsored or supported by one of the above
types of organizations does not meet the inclusion
criteria for the National Guideline Clearinghouse™).
- Corroborating documentation can be produced and verified
that a systematic literature search and review of
existing scientific evidence published in peer reviewed
journals was performed during the guideline development.
A guideline is not excluded from the National Guideline
Clearinghouse (TM) if corroborating documentation can be
produced and verified detailing specific gaps in
scientific evidence for some of the guideline's
recommendations.
- The guideline is English language, current, and the most
recent version produced. Documented evidence can be
produced or verified that the guideline was either
developed, reviewed, or revised within the last 5 years.
Current as of July 13, 1998
Internet Citation:
Invitation to Submit Guidelines to the National Guideline Clearinghouse™. Federal Register notice, July 13, 1998. Agency for Health Care Policy and Research, Rockville, MD. http://www.ahrq.gov/fund/ngcguidl.htm