The Council on Chiropractic Guidelines and Practice Parameters' (CCGPP) literature syntheses, published in the Journal of Manipulative and Physiological Therapeutics in late 2008 and early 2009, have now been accepted by the National Guideline Clearinghouse and are available on the Web at www.guideline.gov.
"The CCGPP is very excited about the literature syntheses being accepted for inclusion by the National Guideline Clearinghouse," said Dr. Mark Dehen, immediate past chair of the council. "To have the CCGPP's literature syntheses and treatment recommendations listed is a significant and historic step in our long-term Dissemination, Implementation, Evaluation and Revision (DIER) process. This level of acknowledgment will make these literature syntheses broadly available to all of our stakeholders, better educating them about the chiropractic profession and encouraging collaborative opportunities. More importantly, it will provide another avenue to make this information available to our chiropractic practitioners as they seek to continue to increase the quality of care they provide their patients."
Throughout the past several years, the council has released various chapters (Low Back and Leg Complaints, Fibromyalgia, Myofascial Trigger Points and Myofascial Pain Syndrome, Nonmusculoskeletal Conditions, etc.) of what it calls the "Chiropractic Clinical Compass"as draft documents on the Internet for stakeholder comment and review. When the chapters had been finalized, the literature syntheses were published in JMPT (November/December 2008 and January 2009 issues).
In a 2005 article in DC, Dr. Dehen described the intended purpose of the Chiropractic Clinical Compass: "The Chiropractic Compass will provide doctors with the supporting information to make reasonable, informed health care decisions. The document will assist the doctor's explanation of the rationale for treatment to the patient, case managers and third-party payers. In addition, the document will be able to provide that initial second opinion the doctor occasionally needs. The Chiropractic Compass also recognizes the individuality of patients and helps to balance their preferences with reasonable treatment options, allowing for tailored care."
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