ObjectiveTo acquaint the development process and item composition of the appraisal tools and reporting standards of clinical pathways worldwide, in order to improve the development and evaluation of clinical pathways. MethodsWe searched databases including PubMed, EMbase, Web of Science, CBM, CNKI and WanFang Data for articles about the appraisal tools and reporting standards of clinical pathways from inception to Jan, 2014. Two reviewers independently screened literature according to the inclusion and exclusion criteria, extracted data, and compared the difference in development process and item composition among included appraisal tools and reporting standards of clinical pathways. ResultsA total of 7 appraisal tools and reporting standards were included. Among them, 3 were from UK, 1 from China, 1 from Australia, 1 from Belgium, and 1 from Saudi Arabia. All included appraisal tools contained 4 to 15 domains and 14 to 99 items. Based on the comparison of different domains and items of included appraisal tools, "Clinical Pathway Management Guidelines" published by the National Health and Family Planning Commission of the People's Republic of China and the research of Vannhaecht, we identified 17 key elements of clinical pathway as follows:organizational commitment, pathway project management, format of doc, content of pathway, multidisciplinary involvement, variance management, EBM/guidelines, maintenance of pathway, accountability, patient involvement, development of pathway, additional support systems & documents, operational arrangement, implementation, outcome management, safety and organization of the care process. ConclusionCurrently, the appraisal tools and reporting standards of clinical pathways are rudimentary, so we desperately needs to establish mature appraisal tool and reporting standard of clinical pathways to guide the development and implementation of clinical pathway, so as to improve their application effects in clinical practice and medical quality.
The AMSTAR 2, a critical appraisal tool, was developed for assessing systematic reviews which included randomized or non-randomized studies of healthcare interventions, or both. It was recently published in BMJ. This paper introduces AMSTAR 2 and interprets its usage by a published systematic review.
Assessment of Real World Observational Studies (ArRoWS) is a tool developed by the Leicester Real World Evidence (LRWE) Unit of the Diabetes Research Centre of the University of Leicester in the United Kingdom to assess the quality of real world evidence research, and has been reported to have good practicability. ArRoWS can be used to quickly and specifically assess the quality of real world evidence research that uses electronic health record information. The tool contains 16 items, nine of which are common items, and seven of which are related to specific research designs. The current study introduces the development background, development process, assessment items, assessment criteria, and application methods of ArRoWS and other related aspects, to provide references for real world researchers in China.