[Best practice agreement: implementation of best practice guidelines in HCL hospitals in Lyon, France]

Since 2004, the Hospices Civils de Lyon (HCL) hospitals are committed to comply with best practice guidelines for healthcare products that are reimbursed in addition to diagnosis related groups' (DRGs) tariffs in France, and that, even before the publication of the law concerning best practice agreement. It has been necessary to adapt national drugs best practice guidelines to every-day practice. A working group, COPIL RBU, has been created in HCL hospitals to manage the best practice guidelines locally. This group has two main activities: it conducts a scientific and regulatory information watch and follows up emerging indications at HCL. The group's best practice guidelines contain a classification of indications into three categories: approved indications (market authorization and temporary protocol of treatment), currently-assessed indications and contra-indications. Our best practice guidelines are more than a rewriting of national guidelines since they include emerging indications validated by prescribing physicians at HCL hospitals. A scientific argumentation is made for each emerging indication that is classified in our guidelines, based on the level of scientific evidence available. The practical use of our best practice guidelines is made through a best practice prescription that enables the traceability of drugs from the prescription to the administration to the patient. These prescriptions are accompanied with best practice guidelines made by medical and pharmaceutical professional groups. Audits will then be conducted to assess the indications' conformity to our guidelines and to have a better knowledge of current medical practice.