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Clinical Practice Guidelines

The guide has the resources and methodology for developing and updating clinical practice guideline.

GRADE approach

The Grading of Recommendations, Assessment, Development, and Evaluation (GRADE) system   is widely used and considered the standard in guideline development. In GRADE, grades have two components: a two-level representation of the strength of recommendation (strong or weak) and a four-level representation of the quality of the evidence (high, moderate, low, and very low).

Video: Overview of the GRADE approach in guideline development

Guideline Search Engine

This search engine is a custom Google Search of clinical guideline websites. You may search using Google conventions (i.e. putting quotation marks around phrases: "breast cancer").

What is a Clinical Practice Algorithm?

A clinical algorithm or flow chart is a written guide in graphic format that represents stepwise procedures for clinical decision making about the evaluation and management of a clinical problem. It serves to organize thought in a logical and visible way for medical education and patient care (Margolis 1983, Hadorn 1992).

The clinical practice algorithms developed for MD Anderson  depict multidisciplinary best practices to assist in cancer screening, diagnostic evaluation, treatment, management of clinical symptoms and transition to survivor care. The development of practice algorithms used a multidisciplinary approach and took into consideration circumstances particular to MD Anderson, including the following: MD Anderson’s specific patient population, our services and structure and our clinical information. However, these algorithms are not intended to replace the independent medical or professional judgment of physicians or other health care providers.

References:

1.  Margolis, C. Z. (1983). "Uses of Clinical Algorithms." JAMA: The Journal of the American Medical Association 249(5): 627-632.

2.  Hadorn, D. C., K. McCormick and A. Diokno (1992). "An Annotated Algorithm Approach to Clinical Guideline Development." JAMA: The Journal of the American Medical Association 267(24): 3311-3314.

Literature Search for Updating or Developing Clinical Practice Algorithms

One of the essential steps for developing evidence-based clinical practice algorithms is to perform a systematic literature review. A librarian can assist you in the literature review process by finding the evidence effectively and efficiently. You can request a literature search by using Clinical Effectiveness Literature Search Request Form.

The previous literature search projects for creating clinical practice algorithms can be found at Research Medical Library SharePoint Site. (To request access, please contact the librarian.)