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Intended for Healthcare Professionals
British Journal of General Practice

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Research Article

Which clinical practice guidelines for depression? An overview for busy practitioners.

P L Cornwall and J Scott
British Journal of General Practice 2000; 50 (460): 908-911.
P L Cornwall
University Department of Psychiatry, Royal Victoria Infirmary, Newcastle upon Tyne.
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J Scott
University Department of Psychiatry, Royal Victoria Infirmary, Newcastle upon Tyne.
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Abstract

BACKGROUND: Many policy and research documents on the treatment of depression in primary care suggest that general practitioners (GPs) should make use of clinical guidelines. AIM: To describe the content of peer-reviewed guidelines for the detection and treatment of depression in primary care and help GPs identify the one most useful to their own needs. METHOD: Guidelines were evaluated by an explicit method using the Institute of Medicine assessment instrument and according to six key clinical management questions identified as important by GPs and psychiatrists. RESULTS: Only five (30%) of the published guidelines identified met all the pre-defined inclusion criteria. Total scores for development process and content ranged from 54% to 82%. Validity scores ranged from 52% to 88%. No guideline answered all the key questions identified by clinicians. CONCLUSIONS: Only two guidelines conform to the quality standard of a clinical practice guideline. One covers all aspects of detection and management of depression in primary care but gives no advice on first-line choice of antidepressant, while the other focuses only on medication and fails to explore problems of case detection or to consider non-pharmacological treatments. However, taken together they do cover most of the key clinical issues in a reliable and valid manner. The identified guidelines vary considerably in both utility and clinical applicability.

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British Journal of General Practice: 50 (460)
British Journal of General Practice
Vol. 50, Issue 460
November 2000
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Which clinical practice guidelines for depression? An overview for busy practitioners.
P L Cornwall, J Scott
British Journal of General Practice 2000; 50 (460): 908-911.

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Which clinical practice guidelines for depression? An overview for busy practitioners.
P L Cornwall, J Scott
British Journal of General Practice 2000; 50 (460): 908-911.
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