The National Guideline Clearinghouse

Abstract

The National Guideline Clearinghouse (NGC), found at http://www.guideline.gov, is a free resource that presents evidence-based clinical practice guidelines all in one location. The NGC was initially a joint project of the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ), the American Medical Association (AMA), and the American Association of Insurance Plans (which is now America's Health Insurance Plans (AHIP)). The database is currently produced by the AHRQ alone. This column will provide a brief tour of the home page of this database, which is full of useful links, as well as give the basics of searching NGC.

Key Words:

• National Guideline Clearinghouse
• databases
• factual databases
• evidence-based medicine
• guidelines
• information dissemination
• practice guidelines
• United States