Guidelines International Network: Principles for Disclosure of Interests and Management of Conflicts in Guidelines

Abstract

Conflicts of interest (COIs) have been defined by the American Thoracic Society as "a divergence between an individual's private interests and his or her professional obligations such that an independent observer might reasonably question whether the individual's professional actions or decisions are motivated by personal gain, such as direct financial, academic advancement, clinical revenue streams, or community standing." In the context of guideline development, the concerns are not simply about identifying and disclosing direct financial or indirect COIs. Despite this recognition, the management of COIs in guidelines is often unsatisfactory. In response to requests from its international membership and informed by existing syntheses of the evidence and policies of international organizations, the Guidelines International Network Board of Trustees developed guidance on the disclosure of interests and management of COIs. Current approaches are relatively similar throughout the guideline development community, with an increasing recognition of the importance of disclosing and managing indirect COIs. Although there are differences in detail among the approaches, the similarities allow for the formulation of 9 core principles for managing COIs. In formulating these principles, the Guidelines International Network Board of Trustees recognizes that COIs cannot be totally avoided when panel members are being chosen for certain guidelines or in certain settings; thus, the important issue is the management of COIs in a fair, judicious, transparent manner.

When is a guideline not a guideline? The devil is in the details

“…Recognising that ‘the management of COIs in guidelines is often unsatisfactory’, the G-I-N Network Board of Trustees developed nine core principles to guide the disclosure of interests and management of COIs (p. 548) 23. Their first principle is that ‘Guideline developers should make all possible efforts to not include members with direct financial or relevant indirect COIs’ (p. 550),23 and they emphasise that when COIs cannot be avoided ‘the challenge lies in judicious management’ (p. 552) 23.…”

Management of opioid use disorders: a national clinical practice guideline

“…Competing interests were assessed using the Guidelines International Network's Principles for Disclosure of Interests and Management of Conflicts in Guidelines. 15 No current or ongoing direct competing interests were disclosed by the 43 members of the review committee or the four CRISM principal investigators on screening for participation in the review committee. Among the 43 committee members, five individuals reported past direct competing interests in the five years before committee participation in the form of paid consulting, services as a technical advisor, or fees to participate in a speaker panel or training seminar.…”

How to prepare a systematic review of economic evaluations for informing evidence-based healthcare decisions: a five-step approach (part 1/3)

“…Conflicts of interest or disclosure of interests should be handled in an appropriate way [30]. These can be defined as 'a divergence between an individual's private interests and his or her professional obligations such that an independent observer might reasonably question whether the individual's professional actions or decisions are motivated by personal gain, such as direct financial, academic advancement, clinical revenue streams, or community standing [31]'.…”

“…These can be defined as 'a divergence between an individual's private interests and his or her professional obligations such that an independent observer might reasonably question whether the individual's professional actions or decisions are motivated by personal gain, such as direct financial, academic advancement, clinical revenue streams, or community standing [31]'. GIN has published a recent paper on the principles of managing conflicts of interest in guideline development [30].…”