HHS launches Web repository for guidelines
74 cardiac-related protocols are just a click away
There’s a new cardiac resource on the Internet — a repository for more than 500 evidence-based clinical practice guidelines that have been developed by the Agency for Health Care Policy and Research (AHCPR) in partnership with the American Medical Association and the American Association of Health Plans.
The National Guideline Clearinghouse at www.guideline.gov contains thousands of clinical practice guidelines created by medical and professional societies, managed care organizations, hospitals, state and federal agencies, and others. When our editors searched for "cardiac" at the site, the engine came up with 74 related guidelines.
Hard to find evidence-based guidelines
Until now, guideline users have often had difficulty gaining access to a full range, then had difficulty identifying which were based on evidence. There has been no efficient way of making comparisons to select the guideline that best meets your needs. The clearinghouse responds to that by identifying and featuring evidence-based guidelines and presenting them with standardized abstracts and tables that allow for comparison of guidelines on similar topics.
The tables provide information on the major areas of agreement and disagreement among guidelines, which will help users make informed selections.
"It is well known that variation in health care results partly from uncertainty and a lack of evidence for clinical treatment," says John M. Eisenberg, MD, AHCPR administrator. He says this clearinghouse should help reduce variation and improve health care quality.
The agency will continue to receive guideline submissions, and organizations wishing to submit should contact Vivian Coates, ECRI, NGC Project Director, 5200 Butler Pike, Plymouth Meeting, PA 19462-1298. For questions about guideline submissions, contact Jean Slutsky, NGC Project Officer, (301) 594-4042; e-mail to [email protected].
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