StATS: Evidence-based development of medical guidelines (December 13, 2006)

An open source journal, Health Research Policy and Systems, has a series of articles on how to develop guidelines in a rigorous and evidence-base manner. Here are the first five articles in the series:

• Improving the use of research evidence in guideline development: Introduction. A. D. Oxman, A. Fretheim, H. J. Schunemann. Health Res Policy Syst 2006: 4(1); 12. [Medline] [Abstract] [PDF]
• Best practices in use of research evidence to inform health decisions. J. A. Whitworth. Health Res Policy Syst 2006: 4(1); 11. [Medline] [Abstract] [Full text] [PDF]
• Improving the use of research evidence in guideline development: 1. Guidelines for guidelines. H. J. Schunemann, A. Fretheim, A. D. Oxman. Health Res Policy Syst 2006: 4(1); 13. [Medline] [Abstract] [Full text] [PDF]
• Improving the use of research evidence in guideline development: 2. Priority setting. A. D. Oxman, H. Schunemann, A. Fretheim. Health Res Policy Syst 2006: 4(1); 14. [Abstract] [PDF]
• Improving the use of research evidence in guideline development: 3. Group composition and consultation process. A. Fretheim, H. Schunemann, A. D. Oxman. Health Res Policy Syst 2006: 4(1); 15. [Abstract] [PDF]

The abstract of the first article explains the genesis of this review:

In 2005 the World Health Organisation (WHO) asked its Advisory Committee on Health Research (ACHR) for advice on ways in which WHO can improve the use of research evidence in the development of recommendations, including guidelines and policies. The ACHR established the Subcommittee on the Use of Research Evidence (SURE) to collect background documentation and consult widely among WHO staff, international experts and end users of WHO recommendations to inform its advice to WHO. We have prepared a series of reviews of methods that are used in the development of guidelines as part of this background documentation. We describe here the background and methods of these reviews, which are being published in Health Research Policy and Systems together with this introduction.

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