Comparative Effectiveness or Evidence-Based Medical Practice: “A Rose by Any Other Name…”

Abstract

The goal of education and research in all disciplines is to develop critical thinking skills as a method for improving clinical decisionmaking. The emphasis on critical thinking is nothing new and can be traced back to ancient times when Socrates challenged his students to think about their knowledge, beliefs, and behaviors by interrogating them. It is widely known that Socrates would press his students until they could provide reasons and evidence to support their arguments and would dismiss those beliefs and decisions that could not be supported with evidence. Today, scientific critical analysis in medicine is termed evidence-based medical practice (EBMP), or comparative effective research.