The Institute of Medicine (IOM) today released a report calling for a national clinical effectiveness assessment program to develop standards, set priorities and facilitate systematic reviews of clinical data. The IOM's recommendations underscore the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation's (RWJF) commitment to achieving a health care system that delivers higher quality and more cost-effective care. We believe that good health care can happen with the right mix of evidence, decision-making and timely action; indeed, we are investing in targeted regions across the country to create high-quality health care systems that better meet the needs of patients and other stakeholders.

The IOM report is right to emphasize that the future of health care quality and safety rests on the strength of the evidence we collect, and on our ability to channel that evidence to providers, policy-makers, payers and consumers to help them make better decisions. Comparative effectiveness analyses, which require rigorous evaluation of the costs, risks and benefits of different treatment options for different medical conditions in different sets of patients, hold particular promise for boosting quality, cost-effectiveness and transparency. Such studies, we believe, can be done quickly and inexpensively using existing data. That is why RWJF supports the development of a "rapid-learning" health care system—one that uses large electronic health record databases representing the experience of millions of patients. Harnessing the cumulative data power within a rapid-learning system would greatly speed clinical research, supply needed knowledge about the value of existing and new medical technologies, and provide better safety surveillance. At the same time, the Foundation is helping to lower the cost and expertise barriers associated with using predictive mathematical models like Archimedes, which may help clinical effectiveness research and a rapid-learning health care system deliver results that have transformative impact.

We know that policy-makers, clinicians and patients are clamoring for this kind of information power—we need to accelerate progress in putting this evidence in their hands by creating a rapid-learning clinical effectiveness program such as the one recommended today by the IOM. When we do this, we believe it will translate into stronger health care decisions, better patient outcomes and a healthier future for all Americans.

Risa Lavizzo-Mourey, M.D., M.B.A.
President and CEO
Robert Wood Johnson Foundation

The Robert Wood Johnson Foundation focuses on the pressing health and health care issues facing our country. The Foundation is the sponsor of Cover the Uninsured, the largest mobilization in history to create awareness of the need for action on the issue of the uninsured. As the nation's largest philanthropy devoted exclusively to improving the health and health care of all Americans, the Foundation works with a diverse group of organizations and individuals to identify solutions and achieve comprehensive, meaningful and timely change. For more than 35 years the Foundation has brought experience, commitment, and a rigorous, balanced approach to the problems that affect the health and health care of those it serves. When it comes to helping Americans lead healthier lives and get the care they need, the Foundation expects to make a difference in your lifetime.