Announcements
The Clinical Practice Guidelines for TB may be downloaded here.
Announcements
Clinical Practice Guidelines
Community acquired pneumonia is a significant cause of morbidity and mortality among adults, still remaining as the leading cause of death from an infectious disease. Since the last publication of Philippine Clinical Practice Guidelines on the Diagnosis, Empiric Management, and Prevention of Community-acquired Pneumonia in Immunocompetent Adults in 2016, several important changes have emerged, including increasing rates of multi-drug resistant organisms (MDROs) among respiratory pathogens, the development of new antimicrobial agents meant to address these MDROs, the misuse and overuse of antimicrobial agents. It is for these reasons that an update on the management of CAP is needed.
The following are the guideline’s objectives:
This guideline is intended for use of medical specialists in infectious diseases, pulmonology, family medicine, as well as general practitioners, clinical practitioners, nurses and other health care providers as well as administrators, and policy makers. It can be used in the hospital and community setting—from primary to tertiary level in both private and government clinics or hospitals.
The guideline shall cover all adults, including the elderly, presenting with CAP in the outpatient and in-patient setting except:
There are 17 priority questions identified and 30 corresponding recommendations developed by a group of experts composed of an Oversight Committee, a Guideline Writing Panel and a Technical Review Committee (Table 1). Based on the best available evidences, the quality and strength of evidence was rated using the Grading of Recommendations, Assessment, Development and evaluation (GRADE) approach. Draft recommendations were finalized after these were presented to and voted on by the members of the Consensus Panel.
STEERING COMMITTEE
TECHNICAL WORKING GROUP
Committee on Diagnosis
Members
Committee on Management
Members
Committee on Prevention
ADVISER
CONSENSUS PANEL
Announcements
Last updated February 21, 2022.
The Unified COVID-19 Algorithms reflect evidence updates from the Philippine COVID-19 Living Recommendations. Version 4 is now subsumed under the Philippine COVID-19 Living Recommendations initiative in order to streamline the alignment of evidence with decision-making tools. Under this, it is funded by the Department of Health (DOH) AHEAD Program through the DOST-Philippine Council for Health Research and Development (PCHRD) and the DOH-Disease Prevention and Control Bureau (DPCB).
Version 4 is built on the grassroots effort of volunteers from different medical organizations, subject matter experts, stakeholders, as well as end-users. Facilitation was done by technical specialists from the Asia- Pacific Center for Evidence-Based Healthcare (APCEBH), Alliance for Improving Health Outcomes (AIHO), and Kalusugan ng Mag-Ina (KMI). With the Philippine context in perspective, the algorithms provide clear guidance for COVID-19 management from both the community and hospital levels. The development process was framed on evidence-based, patient-centered, and equity-driven principles.
Work on the first release of the Unified COVID-19 Algorithms started as early as March 2020 with representatives from the Philippine Society for Microbiology and Infectious Diseases (PSMID), Philippine College of Physicians (PCP), Philippine Society of General Internal Medicine (PSGIM), and the Philippine Society of Public Health Physicians (PSPHP). The Philippine College of Occupational Medicine (PCOM) and the Philippine College of Emergency Medicine (PCEM) were also among the first medical societies to join us in unifying guidance for colleagues at the frontlines. This collaboration incubated the formation of the Healthcare Professionals Alliance Against COVID-19 (HPAAC).
With continued support from PSMID, expansion was carried out by the HPAAC Steering Committee through its network of volunteers and the leadership of various medical professional societies. Major changes in the latest version include the following:
These algorithms are subject to change as new evidence emerges and existing guidelines are updated. Recommendations on patient care are not absolute. Final decisions remain under the discretion of the healthcare provider.
As the unified algorithms are utilized, end-users are enjoined to provide feedback as to their experience with use of the algorithms in the field through: secretariat@psmid.org and hpaac.org.ph/contact or secretariat@hpaac.org.ph.
The following organizations and their representatives contributed to the content, review and update of various sections:
Version 1 and 2 Contributors
You may download the most recent Unified COVID-19 Algorithms here (Document date: February 21, 2022).
The Unified COVID-19 Algorithms are based primarily on the latest Philippine COVID-19 Living Recommendations as well as other relevant guidelines and circulars. As such, the recommendations will be constantly updated, and new recommendations will be added as the evidence evolves. The recommendations are based on the best evidence available in scientific literature at the time of its formulation. The unified algorithms and the living recommendations are not comprehensive guides to all practice questions and management options on COVID-19. The algorithms and guidelines are not meant to restrict the practitioner in using sound clinical judgement and sharing the decision with the patient, and from considering other management options according to the patient’s particular needs and preferences. The said algorithms and guidelines can also serve to inform policy, but they are not meant to serve as basis for approving or denying financial coverage or insurance claims merely because of nonconformance with recommendations. Neither are the recommendations intended to be considered as legal rules for dictating certain modes of action to the exclusion of others.
Clinical Practice Guidelines
Announcements
You may download the PSMID Guidance on the Timing of Blood Donation among Donors Who Received COVID-19 Vaccines HERE.
Clinical Practice Guidelines
Patients undergoing regular hemodialysis are considered vulnerable and thus require specific guidelines in the context of COVID-19. The goal is to minimize the risk of transmission of SARS-CoV-2 in facilities that provide routine hemodialysis services to this specific group of immunocompromised individuals. This document will guide nephrologists, physicians and other healthcare professionals practicing in hemodialysis units as they attend to patients seeking hemodialysis services in their facilities. Recommendations in this rapid guidance are based on best available evidence and will be updated as new evidence becomes available.
You may download a copy of the PSN-PSMID-PHICS Interim Guidelines in the Prevention and Control of COVID19 Infection in Hemodialysis Facilities here.
Announcements
> NOTE: The COVID-19 Living Clinical Practice Guidelines contains UPDATED recommendations and evidence summaries. Click here to be redirected to the COVID LCPG.
This Interim Guidance on the Clinical Management of Adult Patients with Suspected or Confirmed COVID-19 Infection (Version 3.1) is an update of the March 31, 2020 guidelines released by the Philippine Society for Microbiology and Infectious Diseases. New evidence have been published since then necessitating this update.This document is written to guide clinicians and health care workers in their COVID-19 related management decisions. It is based on available scientific evidence that is also rapidly evolving, as more is discovered about the pathophysiology of SARS CoV-2 and the pathogenesis of the disease. As such, the recommendations in this guideline are based on limited, often low-quality evidence, and need to be carefully balanced with clinical judgment. The use of investigational drugs should be discussed with the patient or a legally authorized representative carefully outlining the potential adverse reactions and the potential clinical benefits of these investigational drugs. A signed informed consent should be obtained by the clinician.
DOWNLOAD the Interim Management Guidelines for COVID-19 (Version 3.1) here.
Announcements
The performance of surgeries, especially elective surgeries, has been affected as healthcare facilities responded to the COVID-19 pandemic. However, surgery and other interventional procedures are invaluable aspects of healthcare even during disasters, mass casualty incidents, and even during pandemics. An organized and well-planned approach is needed to protect healthcare workers performing surgery and to rationally use available PPEs.
This document aims to provide guidance on how to assess the risk of COVID-19 transmission to the surgical team and recommend the necessary PPE to be used for every scenario. This is intended for surgeons, infectious disease specialists, internists and other physicians who will perform procedures or evaluate patients prior to such procedures. Other personnel involved in the surgical team might also find this document useful. Optimizing operating room infrastructure and other infection prevention and control measures are not within the scope of this document. Recommendations from this document may change as new evidence becomes available.
DOWNLOAD the Risk Assessment of Surgeries in the Context of COVID-19 document here.
PSMID-PHICS Guidelines for Risk Assessment of Surgeries during COVID19 26May2020
Clinical Practice Guidelines
Here is the latest treatment algorithm for the management of patients with probable or confirmed COVID-19.
Updated_COVID tx algorithm_July 20The Interim Management Guidelines for COVID-19 (Version 3.1) can be accessed here.
The Philippine Society for Microbiology and Infectious Diseases (PSMID) Guidance on the Management of Mpox, Ver. 1 provides the basic and most updated information on management of patients confirmed with mpox.
This guidance complements the mpox recommendations of the DOH (Updated Interim Guidelines on the Prevention, Detection, and Management of MPOX, by Department of Health, August 26, 2024, Department Memorandum 2024-0306) and PHICS-PHICNA (Interim Guidelines on the Prevention and Control of Monkeypox version 1).
The antivirals, immunoglobulin and vaccines discussed below are not available locally. In our local situation, we should maximize supportive care for mpox cases.