Australians should continue to benefit from a health system based on clinical trials evidence
In mid 2012 the MJA convened a summit on improving the landscape of clinical trials in Australia, where researchers from investigator networks and trial coordinating centres met with government policymakers, industry representatives, consumer groups and health professionals. The difficulties Australia faces in relation to research and health care and the practical solutions that emerged from the summit are the subject of a series of forthcoming articles in the MJA, including one in this issue.1
The full article is accessible to AMA members and paid subscribers. Login to read more or purchase a subscription now.
Please note: institutional and Research4Life access to the MJA is now provided through Wiley Online Library.
- 1. Nelson M. General practice-based clinical trials. Med J Aust 2013; 198: 136-137.
- 2. Australian Institute of Health and Welfare. Australia’s health 2012. Canberra: AIHW, 2012. (AIHW Cat. No. AUS 156; Australia’s Health Series No. 13.)
- 3. The Treasury. Australia to 2050: future challenges. Intergenerational Report 2010. Canberra: Commonwealth of Australia, 2010: 51.
- 4. Barnett H, Iheanacho I. Do old treatments need a new EBM [editorial]? Clinical Evidence [internet] 2008; Aug 28.
- 5. Scott IA, Glasziou PP. Improving the effectiveness of clinical medicine: the need for better science. Med J Aust 2012; 196: 304-308. <MJA full text>
- 6. INIS Study Collaborative Group. Treatment of neonatal sepsis with intravenous immunoglobulin. N Engl J Med 2011; 365: 1201-1211.
- 7. Graham AM, Myles PS, Leslie K, et al. A cost-benefit analysis of the ENIGMA trial. Anesthesiology 2011; 115: 265-272.
- 8. Cooper DJ, Rosenfeld JV, Murray L, et al; DECRA Trial Investigators and ANZICS Clinical Trials Group. Decompressive craniectomy in diffuse traumatic brain injury. N Engl J Med 2011; 364: 1493-1502.
- 9. Medicines Australia. Keeping clinical trials in Australia: why action is needed now. Canberra: MA, 2011. (Occasional Paper Series, Paper 3.) http://medicinesaustralia.com.au/files/2011/02/Occasional-Paper-3-Clinical-Trials.pdf (accessed Jan 2013).
- 10. Glasziou PP. Support for trials of promising medications through the Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme. A proposal for a new authority category. Med J Aust 1995; 162: 33-36.
- 11. Reid CM, Wing LM, Graham DH. A new paradigm for funding cardiovascular-outcome research in general practice. The Second National Blood Pressure Study. ANBP2 Management Committee. Med J Aust 1998; 169: 349-350.
- 12. National Institute for Health Research. Research capability funding. London: NHS, NIHS, April 2012. http://www.nihr.ac.uk/infrastructure/Pages/research_capability_funding.aspx (accessed Jan 2013).
- 13. VanLare JM, Conway PH, Sox HC. Five next steps for a new national program for comparative-effectiveness research. N Engl J Med 2010; 362: 970-973.
- 14. LIPID Study Group. Prevention of cardiovascular events and death with pravastatin in patients with coronary heart disease and a broad range of initial cholesterol levels. N Engl J Med 1998; 339: 1349-1357.
- 15. Myburgh JA, Finfer S, Bellomo R, et al. Hydroxyethyl starch or saline for fluid resuscitation in intensive care. N Engl J Med 2012; 367: 1901-1911.
- 16. Finfer S, Chittock DR, Su SY, et al. Intensive versus conventional glucose control in critically ill patients. N Engl J Med 2009; 360: 1283-1297.
- 17. Myles PS, Leslie K, Chan MT, et al. Avoidance of nitrous oxide for patients undergoing major surgery: a randomized controlled trial. Anesthesiology 2007; 107: 221-231.
Steven Webb receives funding from a Royal Perth Hospital Medical Research Foundation Practitioner Fellowship.
The NHMRC Clinical Trials Centre and the Australian and New Zealand Intensive Care Society Clinical Trials Group receive research grants from the NHMRC.