Developing clinical practice guidelines: an interview with Ada Jacox. Interview by Barbara Bednar

In 1992, the Agency for Health Care Policy and Research (AHCPR) released the first in a series of clinical practice guidelines designed to assist hospitals, practitioners, insurers, and consumers in learning more about which medical practices work and how that knowledge should be applied to delivering health care. In this interview, Ada Jacox, PhD, RN, co-chair of the pain management panel, discusses the development of clinical practice guidelines, their importance to health care professionals and consumers, and their possible impact on future practice.