medicine cabinets
evidence based medicine and the changing nature of health care 2007 iom annual meeting summary
drawing on the work of the roundtable on evidence based medicine the 2007 iom annual meeting assessed some of the rapidly occurring changes in health care related to new diagnostic and treatment tools emerging genetic insights the developments in information technology and healthcare costs and discussed the need for a stronger focus on evidence to ensure that the promise of scientific discovery and technological innovation is efficiently captured to provide the right care for the right patient at the right time . as new discoveries continue to expand the universe of medical interventions treatments and methods of care the need for a more systematic approach to evidence development and application becomes increasingly critical . without better information about the effectiveness of different treatment options the resulting uncertainty can lead to the delivery of services that may be unnecessary unproven or even harmful . improving the evidence base for medicine holds great potential to increase the quality and efficiency of medical care . the annual meeting held on october 8 2007 brought together many of the nations leading authorities on various aspects of the issues both challenges and opportunities to present their perspectives and engage in discussion with the iom membership .