New rheumatology guideline proposals wanted

08 June 2022

Our Standards, Audit and Guidelines Working Group (SAGWG) has opened a call for topic suggestions for future evidence-based guidelines.

Professionals from any clinical discipline in the UK rheumatology community are welcome to submit their ideas by Wednesday 31 August. All proposals will be reviewed at SAGWG's October meeting.

BSR’s guideline development process has been accredited by NICE and guideline users can be confident of the quality of the final recommendations. Each topic proposal should:

Provide a short title and the specific objective(s) for the proposed guideline
Provide an overview (<2 pages) of the topic that highlights relevant background information (with key supporting references)
Explain the burden/importance of the condition/health care intervention. SAGWG will want to gauge if it is large enough to warrant guideline development. If you can, provide some estimate of the burden (e.g., incidence, prevalence, costs).
Explain if there is uncertainty or controversy about the relative effectiveness of the available clinical strategies for the condition(s) for which a guideline is proposed. If you can, provide some examples/assessment of this uncertainty.
Describe perceived or documented variation in practice in the management of a given condition or use of a particular healthcare intervention. Provide some assessment/references related to significant differences in practice patterns
Show if there sufficient scientific evidence of good quality to allow development of a guideline. Provide some references, particularly randomised controlled studies to support the development of systematic reviews and analysis of the topic
State if there are existing guidelines on the proposed topic. If a guideline was to be developed and we assume appropriate dissemination, can you argue that it would make a significant impact on clinical decision-making/clinical outcomes and/or reduce practice variation?

Submit proposal