Comparative Effectiveness Research
Comparative effectiveness research examines which treatment options work best for a given population and under what circumstances, based on the relative benefits, harms, and costs of those treatments. These core questions are fundamental concerns for patients and clinicians confronting a health problem and deciding among treatment options.
At RTI, we gather and assess the best available research about health care treatments to foster better decision making and improve patient care outcomes and quality of life. We amass and analyze relevant scientific literature to produce rigorous systematic reviews on topics related to prevention, diagnosis, treatment, and management of common diseases and clinical conditions and on a wide variety of behavioral and policy topics. We conduct studies using electronic and survey data to compare the outcomes of therapies used for treating conditions that have important public health significance.
Our multidisciplinary project teams include scientists and technicians in medicine, nursing, dentistry, pharmacy, statistics, epidemiology, health services, economics, and policy. Our researchers
- Help to identify priorities for generating and synthesizing evidence
- Generate evidence from observational studies using data from health insurers, electronic medical records, and surveys
- Synthesize evidence into comparative effectiveness reviews and systematic reviews
- Develop and enhance methods for conducting systematic reviews and analyzing observational data
- Disseminate best practices through our health communication and marketing capabilities
- Collaborate with guideline developers such as professional societies and health plan officials
- Work with health systems to embed clinical guidelines into electronic medical records
Comparative Effectiveness Research Centers
- RTI-UNC Evidence-Based Practice Center
Conducting systematic reviews and analyses of the scientific evidence on a variety of health care and health policy topics - RTI DEcIDE (Developing Evidence to Inform Decisions about Effectiveness) Center
Helping clinicians and patients determine which drugs, devices, procedures, and other medical treatments work best for certain health conditions
Related Research
- Data Coordinating Centers
Evidence generation: clinical trials and observational studies - RTI-UNC Center of Excellence in Health Promotion Economics
Evidence synthesis: cost-effectiveness analyses - Health Communication and Marketing
Evidence dissemination: communication of findings
rti.orgRelated Content
Institute of Medicine Report Recommends 100 Initial Priorities for Research to Determine Which Health Care Approaches Work Best
A new report from the Institute of Medicine recommends 100 health topics that should get priority attention and funding from a new national research effort to identify which health care services work best.