Practice guidelines. What are internists looking for?
To determine features of the presentation of clinical practice guidelines that may enhance their use by internists, we conducted a cross-sectional survey to which 1,513 (60%) of 2,513 eligible internists responded. Endorsements by respected colleagues and by major organizations were identified as very important by 72% and 69% of respondents, respectively. Respondents preferred short pamphlets and manuals summarizing a number of guidelines and felt that concise recommendations (86%), synopsis of supporting evidence (85%), and quantification of benefit (77%) were important in guideline presentation. We conclude that guideline developers should gain the endorsement of major organizations and present key aspects in brief, easily assimilated formats.
Hayward
R S
RS
Department of Medicine, McMaster University Faculty of Health Sciences, Hamilton, Ontario, Canada.
Wilson
M C
MC
Tunis
S R
SR
Guyatt
G H
GH
Moore
K A
KA
Bass
E B
EB
D001291:Attitude of Health Personnel; D006801:Humans; D007388:Internal Medicine / Q000592:standards* / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D017410:Practice Guidelines as Topic / Q000592:standards*; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires; D014481:United States