Case Studies

An NIH study of treatments for high blood pressure, called the ALLHAT trial, shows some of the strengths and limitations of comparative effectiveness research to improve patient care. More...

Recent Blog Posts

PIPC chairman delivers speech to specialty docs on importance of patient centered CER
July 6, 2010 |

Partnership to Improve Patient Care (PIPC) chairman, Tony Coelho, recently delivered a speech on patient centered comparative effectiveness research (CER) in front of fifty specialty doctors from around the country, among others, at the Alliance for Specialty Medicine’s (ASM) “Capitol Hill Advocacy Conference.” The conference took place just a day before the specialty doctors met w

 | Read More
Tony Coelho's recent speech on patient centered CER
June 24, 2010 |

Below: PIPC Chairman Tony Coelho's recent speech on patient centered CER. The speech was delivered on Tuesday, June 22, 2010 at the Alliance for Specialty Medicine's “Capitol Hill Advocacy Conference,” in Washington, D.C.

 | Read More
Lack of support for "evidence-based health care"— don't blame the patient
June 10, 2010 |

A new Health Affairs article concludes, based on focus groups and interviews, that "consumers will revolt if evidence-based efforts are perceived as rationing or as a way to deny them needed treatment."

You don't need to look any further than public reaction to the U.S. Preventive Service Task Force's updated recommendations on mammography screening to see the proof of this.
 
How should policy-makers react? Should they conclude that consumers, and even more so, patients, cannot be relied on to make evidence-based decisions, and therefore these decisions need to be made for them? Or should they conclude that evidence-based models of medical care and health delivery need to be carefully constructed so they have the trust and support of patients and consumers?

 | Read More

For Reporters

For journalists and other media professionals

More Information

Stay Connected

June 2009

PIPC Calls for Bipartisan Consensus on Patient-Centered Comparative Effectiveness

WASHINGTON, June 26, 2009 – After speaking at a health care reform event on comparative effectiveness research and choice in health care, Chairman of the Partnership to Improve Patient Care (PIPC), Tony Coelho, issued the following statement:
 

Why is CER Important?

Submitted by Tony Coelho on Tue, 06/23/2009 - 22:50 | Posted in:

On Thursday, I will be joining the Alliance for Health Reform to participate in a panel discussion about choices can affect healthcare and how comparative effectiveness research (CER) should be considered by policymakers considering healthcare reform legislation.
 

Welcome to new PIPC Website

Submitted by Tony Coelho on Thu, 06/18/2009 - 22:43 | Posted in:

Welcome to PIPC. We're a broad coalition dedicated to promoting patient-centered approaches to comparative effectiveness research (CER).

You may have been hearing about comparative effectiveness research as part of the current health care debate going on here in Washington. We believe CER can benefit patients by giving them the information they need to make good health care decisions, and we're working hard to make sure CER is focused on the needs of patients and caregivers.

ALLHAT Case Study

ALLHAT Case STudy

In December of 2002, the National Institutes of Health (NIH) published a study in the Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA) that sought to compare the relative benefits of three popular hypertension medicines. The study known by its abbreviated title, ALLHAT, garnered significant media attention because of its large sample size, government sponsorship, and seemingly novel results. While the majority of media reports on the study contained accurate information, the study‚ outcomes and implications were over-simplified and over-interpreted.