Evaluating the evidence: guidelines.

Guidelines are collections of practical information that assist with clinical decision making. Evidence-based guideline development includes a critique of the quality and an evaluation of the strength of published evidence. Evolution From opinion-based to evidence-based guidelines is incomplete in many of the organizations that author them, so perioperative nurses must become skillful at critiquing guideline development methodologies and clinical content. The AGREE instrument is useful for evaluating guideline development. Nurses have access to evidence-based guidelines registered online through the National Guideline Clearinghouse.