What is an AACPDM Care Pathway?

A Care Pathway is a practical summary, including an algorithm, of evidence informed guidelines or the best evidence, for an aspect of care/services for individuals with childhood-onset disabilities to inform clinical practice.

See current care pathways listed below:

• Central Hypotonia

  Authors (AACPDM Central Hypotonia Care Pathway Team): G. Paleg (lead), R. Livingstone, E. Rodby-Bousquet, M. Story, and N.L. Maitre
   

• Dystonia in Cerebral Palsy

  Authors (AACPDM Dystonia Care Pathway Team): D Fehlings (team lead), L Brown, A Harvey, K Himmelmann, JP Lin, A MacIntosh, J Mink, E Monbaliu, J Rice, J Silver, L Switzer, I Walter
   

• Early Detection of Cerebral Palsy

  Authors (AACPDM Early Detection of Cerebral Palsy Care Pathway Team): I Novak (team lead), C Morgan (team lead), L Adde, N Badawi, J Blackman, R N Boyd, J Brunstrom-Hernandez, G Cioni, D Damiano, J Darrah, A-C Eliasson, L de Vries, C Einspieler, M Fahey, D Fehlings, D Ferriero, L Fetters, S Fiori, H Forssberg, A Gordon, S Greaves, A Guzzetta, M Hadders-Algra, R Harbourne, A Kakooza-Mwesige, P Karlsson, L Krumlinde-Sundholm, B Latal, A Loughran-Fowlds, N Maitre, S McIntyre, G Noritz, L Pennington, D M Romeo, R Shepherd, A Spittle, M Thornton, J Valentine, K Walker, R White
   

• Hip Surveillance in Cerebral Palsy

  Authors (AACPDM Hip Surveillance Care Pathway Team): M O’Donnell (team lead), T Mayson (project manager and clinical examination sub-group leader), S Miller (radiology sub-group leader), R Cairns, K Graham, S Love, F Miller, K Mulpuri, U Narayanan, H Read, B Shore, K Stannage, P Thomason, J Vargus-Adams, L Wiggins, K Willoughby, M Wynter
   

• Osteoporosis in Cerebral Palsy

  Authors (AACPDM Osteoporosis Care Pathway Team): D Fehlings (team lead), L Switzer, R Stevenson, D Gaebler-Spira, B Dalziel, S Ozel
   

• Sialorrhea in Cerebral Palsy

  Authors (AACPDM Sialorrhea Care Pathway Team): L Glader (team lead), C Delsing, A Hughes, J Parr, L Pennington, D Reddihough, K van Hulst, J van der Burg

AACPDM Care Pathways are organized into 3 main sections:

Section I: Evidence Summary (Care Pathway)

A ‘bottom line’ summary (2 page maximum) providing key information to the health professional on a specified health condition. This is paired with an ‘Algorithm’ outlining a logical path from assessment to treatment. The ‘Algorithm’ is color-coded with the level of treatment evidence:

Green = Effective	Purple = Recommended by clinical expert opinion
Yellow = Probably/possibly effective	Red = Not effective

Section II: Published Evidence

Links to peer-reviewed published evidence (systematic reviews and clinical practice guidelines) informing the ‘Care Pathway’

Section III: Practical Tools

Links to helpful practical tools and information for health professionals on the designated ‘Care Pathway’ health condition (e.g. plain language summary, parent handout)

If you are interested in developing a future AACPDM Care Pathway or would like to learn more about the recommended processes for developing a Care Pathway, including those involved in developing a systematic review, please go to the Instructions for AACPDM  Care Pathway Development 2020 Edition.  The document describes the Phases of Care Pathway development and details the required methodology, tools ,and procedures.  The Instructions have a companion document, the GDC-CP, which is a checklist used by Care Pathway teams for detailed guidance and documentation of all steps in the development process.

The new methodology for Care Pathway development (as described in the Instructions for AACPDM  Care Pathways Development 2020 Edition) is being developed for adoption.  If you are interested in developing a Care Pathway, please contact the Care Pathways Committee for further information on how to submit of letter of interest.