Evaluation of the Treatment Guidelines of NICE - Dissertation Example

Respiratory - Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease - Number and Number Number of Words: 536 Introduction Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) is a clinical case wherein the patient is experiencing airflow obstruction (NICE, 2004, p. 5). About NICE guidelines, this study will examine and evaluate the treatment guidelines when treating patients with COPD. Based on the evaluation report, whether or not the NICE guidelines on COPD are valid and worth reproducing will be explained in detail.

Evaluation of the Treatment Guidelines of NICE The NICE guidelines about the treatment and care for patients with COPD are very informative in the sense that the NICE guidelines provide a clear explanation with regards to who, what, when, and how to use the inhaled therapy or bronchodilators (beta2-agonists or anticholinergics) in controlling the signs and symptoms of COPD, identify individuals who are eligible to receive pulmonary rehabilitation, significance of using non-invasive ventilation in patients with persistent hypercapnic ventilatory failure, and the use of medical therapy among others (NICE, 2004, pp. 6 – 7). About the importance of IP laws in digital learning, it is common knowledge that the use of proper referencing should be observed to increase the validity and public acceptance of the information found in any form of publicly published documents (Anderson, 1998, p. 15, 23). By following the proper way of referencing the sources of information, the author of a publicly published reading material is somehow paying respect to the thoughts, ideas, and contributions of other writers who spend time and effort in creating a piece of reading material that could contribute to the improvements in our existing knowledge.

The NICE guidelines on COPD can be considered weak in terms of the way the authors acknowledged the sources of information used in the NICE guidelines. Although the NICE guidelines are very informative in terms of guiding medical professionals about the proper care and treatment for patients with COPD, the quality of references cited in NICE guidelines does not strictly follow the normally accepted way of referencing the reading materials used throughout the development of the NICE guidelines.

Aside from the fact that most of the information found in the NICE guidelines was not properly referenced, the author(s) did not observe the proper use of in-line citations when referencing the main sources of information. Instead of using in-line citations, the authors simply make use of signs like ‘*’ in noting down the main source of information (NICE, 2004, p. 9, 27). Other than failure to provide a formal in-line citation, there is no formal reference page where the author(s) based the information printed on the NICE guidelines.

Instead of observing the proper way of writing a reference or bibliography page, the author(s) produce their way of writing the main sources of information such as the one that can be seen on pages 39 to 40 of NICE guidelines (NICE, 2004). Conclusion Despite some irregularities with the use of proper referencing, it is necessary to consider the credibility of the authors behind the development of NICE guidelines. Since almost all of the authors behind the NICE guidelines are highly reputable doctors, nurses, pharmacists and other medical professionals, the information published by the NICE is considered valid and highly recommended for reproduction.