Medical consensus is a public statement on a particular aspect of medical Medicine is the art and science of healing. It encompasses a range of health care practices evolved to maintain and restore health by the prevention and treatment of illness knowledge available at the time it was written, and that is generally agreed upon as the evidence-based Evidence-based medicine aims to apply the best available evidence gained from the scientific method to medical decision making. It seeks to assess the quality of evidence of the risks and benefits of treatments (including lack of treatment), state-of-the-art The state of the art is the highest level of development, as of a device, technique, or scientific field, achieved at a particular time. It also applies to the level of development reached at any particular time usually as a result of modern methods (or state-of-science) knowledge by a representative group of experts in that area. Its main objective is to counsel physicians on the best possible and acceptable way to diagnose and treat certain diseases A disease or medical condition is an abnormal condition of an organism that impairs bodily functions, associated with specific symptoms and signs. It may be caused by external factors, such as infectious disease, or it may be caused by internal dysfunctions, such as autoimmune diseases. A cure is the end of a medical condition or a treatment that or how to address a particular decision-making Decision making can be regarded as an outcome of mental processes leading to the selection of a course of action among several alternatives. Every decision making process produces a final choice. The output can be an action or an opinion of choice area. Therefore, it can be considered an authoritative, community-based consensus decision-making Consensus decision-making is a group decision making process that not only seeks the agreement of most participants, but also the resolution or mitigation of minority objections. Consensus is usually defined as meaning both general agreement and the process of getting to such agreement. Consensus decision-making is thus concerned primarily with and publication process.
There are many ways of producing medical consensus, but the most usual way is to convene an independent panel of experts, either by a medical association A health association is an professional organization for health professionals. They are often based on specialty and are usually national, often with subnational or regional affiliates. Health associations usually offer conferences and continuing education. They often serve in capacities similar to trade unions, and often take public policy or by a governmental authority. In the United States The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district. The country is situated mostly in central North America, where its forty-eight contiguous states and Washington, D.C., the capital district, lie between the Pacific and Atlantic Oceans, bordered by Canada to the north and Mexico to the, for example, the National Institutes of Health The National Institutes of Health is an agency of the United States Department of Health and Human Services and is the primary agency of the United States government responsible for biomedical and health-related research. It consists of 27 separate institutes and centers which includes the Office of the Director. In July of 2009, President Barack promotes about five to six consensus panels per year, and organizes this knowledge by means of a special Consensus Development Program, managed by its NIH Office of Medical Applications of Research (OMAR). The statements are available in printed form as well as for downloading from the Internet (see link below).
Since consensus statements provide a "snapshot in time" of the state of knowledge in a particular topic, it must periodically be re-evaluated and published again, substituting the previous consensus statement.
Consensus statements differ from medical guidelines A medical guideline is a document with the aim of guiding decisions and criteria regarding diagnosis, management, and treatment in specific areas of healthcare. Such documents have been in use for thousands of years during the entire history of medicine. However, in contrast to previous approaches, which were often based on tradition or authority,, another form of state-of-science public statements. According to the NIH, "Consensus statements synthesize new information, largely from recent or ongoing medical research Biomedical research , in general simply known as medical research, is the basic research, applied research, or translational research conducted to aid and support the body of knowledge in the field of medicine. Medical research can be divided into two general categories: the evaluation of new treatments for both safety and efficacy in what are, that has implications for reevaluation of routine medical practices. They do not give specific algorithms In mathematics, computing, and related subjects, an algorithm is an effective method for solving a problem using a finite sequence of instructions. Algorithms are used for calculation, data processing, and many other fields or guidelines for practice. Such policy decisions often depend on cost, available expertise and technology, and local practice circumstances."
See also
- Medical decision making
- Evidence-based medicine Evidence-based medicine aims to apply the best available evidence gained from the scientific method to medical decision making. It seeks to assess the quality of evidence of the risks and benefits of treatments (including lack of treatment)
- Medical literature Contemporary and historic views regarding diagnosis, prognosis and treatment of medical conditions have been documented for thousands of years. The Edwin Smith papyrus is the first known medical treatise. Initially most described inflictions related to warfare. This was because war was the most important part of society and it was the most common
- Medical research Biomedical research , in general simply known as medical research, is the basic research, applied research, or translational research conducted to aid and support the body of knowledge in the field of medicine. Medical research can be divided into two general categories: the evaluation of new treatments for both safety and efficacy in what are
- Guideline (medical) A medical guideline is a document with the aim of guiding decisions and criteria regarding diagnosis, management, and treatment in specific areas of healthcare. Such documents have been in use for thousands of years during the entire history of medicine. However, in contrast to previous approaches, which were often based on tradition or authority,
- Journal Club A journal club is a group of individuals who meet regularly to critically evaluate recent articles in scientific literature. Journal clubs are usually organized around a defined subject in basic or applied research. For example, the application of evidence-based medicine to some area of medical practice can be facilitated by a journal club
- Algorithm (medical) A medical algorithm is any computation, formula, statistical survey, nomogram, or look-up table, useful in healthcare. Medical algorithms include decision tree approaches to healthcare treatment and also less clear-cut tools aimed at reducing or defining uncertainty. Medical algorithms are part of a broader field which is usually fit under the
External links
Categories: Medical terms | Healthcare quality Categories: Healthcare | Healthcare management | Quality
