Abstract
BackgroundThis study aimed to evaluate the quality of the current clinical practice guidelines (CPGs) in traditional medicine (TM) in South Korea using the Appraisal of Guidelines for Research and Evaluation (AGREE) II instrument to further enhance the CPG development.MethodsA search was performed for guidelines in Korea from inception until March 2014 in the major Korean guideline websites [the Korean Medical Guideline Information Centre (KoMGI), the Korean Guideline Clearing House (KGC)], PubMed and seven Korean electronic databases; the Association of Korean Oriental Medicine (AKOM) was also consulted. Five independent assessors rated the quality of each CPG using the AGREE II instrument and calculated the mean score of each AGREE item. The overall agreement amongst reviewers was evaluated using the intra-class correlation coefficient (ICC).ResultsInitially, 17 CPGs were examined for TM in Korea, and only 8 CPGs satisfied the inclusion criteria. The mean scores for each AGREE II domain were as follows: (1) scope and purpose, 60.0 % (CIs, 45.05-74.94 %); (2) stakeholder involvement, 56.11 % (41.28-70.94 %); (3) rigour of development, 42.7 % (23.48-61.92 %); (4) clarity and presentation, 62.50 % (50.89-74.10 %); (5) applicability, 20.31 % (13.96-26.66 %); and (6) editorial independence, 44.58 % (10.78-78.38 %). All of the CPGs were rated as “recommended with provisos or modifications”. The ICC values for CPG appraisal using the AGREE II ranged from 0.230 to 0.993.ConclusionsTo improve clinical practice and health outcomes, well-developed CPGs are needed. The quality of CPGs for TM in Korea has remained suboptimal according to the AGREE II instrument evaluation. Therefore, guideline developers in Korea should make more of an effort to ensure high-quality CPGs.Electronic supplementary materialThe online version of this article (doi:10.1186/s13012-015-0294-1) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.
Highlights
This study aimed to evaluate the quality of the current clinical practice guidelines (CPGs) in traditional medicine (TM) in South Korea using the Appraisal of Guidelines for Research and Evaluation (AGREE) II instrument to further enhance the Clinical practice guideline (CPG) development
In our previous study, which was a survey of Korean medical doctors concerning their perceptions of the development of CPGs for TM via e-mail, the results suggested the need to develop CPGs and to establish evidence in clinical practice and provide healthcare standards in TM [14]
To the best of our knowledge, no study has investigated the evaluation of CPGs of TM based on the AGREE instrument, CPG development is regularly researched in Korea. Considering these needs, this study aimed to investigate the current state of CPGs for TM through evaluating the quality of evidence-based guidelines in TM using the AGREE II instrument and to identify their quality to further enhance CPG development
Summary
This study aimed to evaluate the quality of the current clinical practice guidelines (CPGs) in traditional medicine (TM) in South Korea using the Appraisal of Guidelines for Research and Evaluation (AGREE) II instrument to further enhance the CPG development. Clinical practice guidelines (CPGs) are systematically developed statements to assist practitioner and patient decisions about appropriate health care for specific clinical circumstances [1, 2]. The Appraisal of Guidelines for Research and Evaluation (AGREE) instrument was published by a group of. Choi et al Implementation Science (2015) 10:104 international guideline developers and researchers [5]. Many countries have adopted the AGREE instrument to assess and validate the quality of CPGs, including CPGs for the management of particular diseases [7,8,9,10]
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