There has been a great debate over the last few years as to what constitutes evidence-based practice in public health, medicine, and rehabilitation. This debate has extended into the public health community, and many CEOs and CMOs of large health insurance companies are searching for that ‘magic bullet’ that will reduce medical expenditures and keep people out of hospitals. I refer to this as the New Age of ‘rationed’ health care, where health insurance corporations serve as the ‘gatekeepers’ for what gets paid for and what doesn’t.
How do we derive evidence-based health promotion practice guidelines for people with disabilities who may be at different stages of a progressive condition or who may have various chronic, associated, and secondary conditions, each affecting their overall health in varying degrees?
Read the entire column at http://www.ncpad.org/325/1958/2005-12~Issue~~Evidence-Based~Practice~in~Disability~and~Public~Health.