Survey on physicians' knowledge and attitudes towards clinical practice guidelines at the Mexican Institute of Social Security.

Objective: A survey was organized to determine the general level of knowledge and attitudes of medical personnel towards clinical practice guidelines (CPG).

Methods: A questionnaire modified from two validated instruments was used. Multi-stratified sampling was applied, and 1782 questionnaires were completed.

[The clinical guidelines as a potential tool to improving health care quality].

There is an increasing demand to ensure quality in the providing and receiving health care. Health care services face different challenges, such as: a growing aging population, increasing care costs, variations in clinical practice, and a fasting increase in the generation of information on diagnostic methods and therapies. In this context, a wave of development and use of clinical guidelines (CGL) based on scientific evidence has emerged worldwide, with the aim to creating tools to promote clinical excellence in practice.

[Causes for failure of the medical appointment program in a family medicine clinic].

The objective of this study was to identify, for both patients and health services, the probable causes for non-attendance at medical appointments in a family medicine clinic located in Mexico City. The three top reasons of visit, type 2 diabetes, hypertension and antenatal care were analyzed. Four hundred and thirty-nine patients who missed their appointment during May 2004 answered an interview.