AGREE News

The AGREE III Consortium, an international collaboration of experts in guideline development, research, and implementation, has officially launched the development of the next phase of the world’s most widely used tool for guideline appraisal. In the Journal of Clinical Epidemiology, the editorial “It’s time for an update: AGREE III, the next iteration of guideline appraisal” outlines the vision and scope of this major initiative.

First released in 2010, AGREE II has become the global gold standard for evaluating the quality of clinical practice guidelines and a blueprint for reporting and development. Over the past decade, however, the field has evolved rapidly with the rise of living guidelines, explicit attention to equity, broader stakeholder engagement, and the integration of artificial intelligence in guideline development. Recognizing these changes, the AGREE III Consortium is now creating AGREE III: a modernized instrument designed to ensure guidelines remain trustworthy, inclusive, and implementable across diverse contexts.

Funded by the Canadian Institutes of Health Research (CIHR), the initiative goes beyond updating the tool itself. It also aims to expand training resources, develop complementary tools, and strengthen dissemination strategies to promote widespread adoption. The Consortium emphasizes collaboration, interdisciplinarity, and capacity building, inviting contributions from the global guideline community.

AGREE III is currently in its development phase. Progress updates will be shared through the AGREE website, social media channels, and upcoming Guidelines International Network (GIN) conferences.

Editorial reference:

AGREE III Consortium. It’s time for an update: AGREE III, the next iteration of guideline appraisal, Journal of Clinical Epidemiology (2025), doi: 10.1016/j.jclinepi.2025.111935

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