Scope & Goals of the methodological guideline

SCOPE & GOALS OF THE METHODOLOGICAL GUIDELINE

This section outlines the sphere at which the guideline is targeted and the goals sought to be attained; and responds to the following questions, namely: For which sphere? To what end? For which end-users?

This methodological guideline is conceived as being a support document for any body or entity, national or international, which is planning to carry out activities involving post-introduction observation of new technologies.

The guideline’s principal aim is to establish a structured methodological framework for observation of new technologies after their introduction into general clinical practice. The specific objectives of this guideline are:

to establish a methodological tool for identifying and prioritising new health technologies eligible for post-introduction observation;
to identify possible data-collection instruments and assess their usefulness and feasibility in post-introduction observation of new technologies; and,
to establish the principal outcome indicators for assessing different aspects considered in post-introduction observation.

Each of these specific objectives will be dealt with independently, so that the guideline can serve as a general support document for implementation of a post-introduction observation system, or to provide guidance on any of the specific sections of the guideline. Guideline end-users will be HTA agencies, hospital health assessment commissions, coordinators of scientific societies registries, manufacturers, public health schools, health managers, administrators and/or any health professionals involved in the planning and/or conduct of different post-introduction observation activities.