UP FRONT
How Guidelines Happen
ASH’s First Guideline
Development Initiative to
Use the New Standardized Process: Venous
Thromboembolism
Since developing a set of standard
procedures for guideline development,
ASH is embarking on its first guideline
development initiative: venous
thromboembolism (VTE).
The goal of the ASH VTE Guideline
Coordination Panel, which began in
2014, is to produce a rigorous and
transparent set of clinical guidelines
that can help inform clinicians and
treatment efforts. The panel, led by
chair Adam Cuker, MD, MS, is in the
midst of what is ultimately projected
to be an 18-month process to develop
a series of rigorous guidelines related
to VTE.
The coordination panel has
organized VTE into 10 logical topics,
to focus research efforts as they
move through the process. Ten expert
panels have been formed to address
each of these topics.
The first step in the process was
to determine who would serve on the
panels. ASH chose panel members
after giving careful consideration to
any potential conflicts of interest and
ensuring balanced representation
by bringing together a diverse and
multidisciplinary group of experts.
“We wanted to be really
thoughtful about having the panels
reflect different perspectives,” Dr.
Cuker said. “For example, there is
a panel on prevention of venous
thromboembolism after surgery,
with a number of surgeons serving
on that panel. We also involved a
variety of other specialists, including
an urologist, a neurosurgeon, an
orthopedic surgeon, pulmonologists,
cardiologists, general internal
medicine specialists, hospitalists, and
epidemiologists.”
Each of the 10 panels is now
developing clinical questions they
hope to answer through the g V