DDIC to present Document Development Workshop at ATS 2012

ATS 2012 International Conference attendees are invited to learn how the Documents Development and Implementation Committee (DDIC) generates official guidelines and documents at a workshop 12:30 p.m. to 4 p.m. Friday, May 18, in the San Francisco Marriott Marquis.

The workshop will cover the various types of documents that ATS develops, the role of the ATS methodologist, the peer review process, how systematic reviews are conducted, use of the Grades of Recommendations, Assessment, Development, and Evaluation (GRADE) system, and the role of DDIC liaisons. Lunch will be provided.

Speakers include DDIC chair Michael K. Gould, MD, MS; ATS methodologist Jan Brozek, MD, PhD; Documents Editor Kevin Wilson, MD; and members of the DDIC.

“This workshop is part of the DDIC’s efforts to bring our documents up to speed with the rapidly evolving science of clinical practice guideline development in order to maximize their validity, methodological rigor, and impact,” Dr. Gould says. “To that end, we have developed a series of educational vignettes and PowerPoint slides, and posted them on the DDIC website, along with the authoritative ‘Guidelines for ATS Documents.’ In addition, DDIC members are now assigned as a liaison to each project team in order to facilitate timely communication and troubleshoot any problems that arise.”

Can’t attend the conference? A number of resources on the document development process are available at www.thoracic.org, including tutorials on document development and guideline development.

For more information about ATS documents or the document development workshop, contact Judy Corn at jcorn@thoracic.org or (212) 315-8694.