Kamerow has directed the new Center for Practice and Technology Assessment in the Public Health Service's Agency for Health Care Policy and Research since October 1997. Kamerow, who was born in Washington, D.C., and still lives and works there, testified about technology assessment to a subcommittee of the President's Advisory Commission on Consumer Protection and Quality in the Health Care Industry in December. Kamerow stressed to the committee that the definition of technology needs to include all products and treatments used in health care, not just the expensive machines. And technology assessment also should include all existing technologies, not just the latest advances. The field of technology assessment is a vibrant, active area with multiple public and private sector participants.
Much duplication exists, however, and the quality of reports varies widely.
Better coordination, with enhanced public-private partnerships, could yield large benefits. These centers do structured medical literature reviews rating the quality of literature on various subjects. The U.S. Preventive Services Task Force will reconvene this year to evaluate preventive care and update the Guide to Clinical Preventive Services. A research program complements every aspect of the center. Our center focuses on finding better ways to take evidence-based recommendations and move them into care.