Institutionalising guideline development in a new universal healthcare system: a study in Cyprus
Abstract Issue Guideline development is a lengthy and diligent process that involves the assessment and interpretation of evidence by a committee. Whilst the implementation of high quality healthcare guidelines ensures consistency and quality in healthcare delivery, many countries worldwide, includi...
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| Published in: | European journal of public health Vol. 34; no. Supplement_3 |
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| Main Authors: | , , , , , , , , |
| Format: | Journal Article |
| Language: | English |
| Published: |
Oxford University Press
01-11-2024
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| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | Get full text |
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| Summary: | Abstract Issue Guideline development is a lengthy and diligent process that involves the assessment and interpretation of evidence by a committee. Whilst the implementation of high quality healthcare guidelines ensures consistency and quality in healthcare delivery, many countries worldwide, including Cyprus, lack the capacity and resources to develop de novo guidelines. Description of the problem Guidelines developed by internationally recognised organisations, such as NICE, are a valuable resource for countries like Cyprus. The collaboration between NICE and the newly established healthcare system in Cyprus introduced a process for guideline institutionalisation, taking advantage of existing human resources and building guideline development capability in Cyprus. Results This process involved recruiting local professionals to form a guideline secretariat. The secretariat, supported by NICE, is responsible for overseeing the guideline development process including technical expert committee (TEC) recruitment and stakeholder consultation. The TEC contextualise an existing NICE guidelines to reflect local considerations. NICE provides quality assurance to ensure changes are contextual in nature and consistent with the underpinning evidence. Despite initial challenges, getting stakeholder buy-in and engaging healthcare professionals in the TEC, one contextualised guideline has been produced and two others are at the final stage. Lessons Guideline contextualisation is an efficient and sustainable way of building guideline development capability to institutionalize guidelines in settings with limited capacity. Key messages • De-novo guideline development is time consuming and demanding and many countries require an alternative process for producing locally relevant guidelines, capitalising on existing resources. • Support by an established organisation ensures quality, is less resource intensive, and builds capability for the sustainability of the process. |
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| ISSN: | 1101-1262 1464-360X |
| DOI: | 10.1093/eurpub/ckae144.955 |