Table 2 Assumptions underlying the present research-care dichotomy, contrasted with proposed care research
From: Ethical care requires pragmatic care research to guide medical practice under uncertainty
Care | Research | Care research | |
|---|---|---|---|
Domain | About medical practice | About research | About medical practice |
Time frame | About particular problems | About future knowledge | About acting now in the presence of uncertainty |
Concerns | Concerns individuals | Concerns diseases or populations | Concerns individuals |
Target beneficiaries | Serves current patients | Serves future patients | Serves primarily current patients, and secondarily future patients |
Treatment protocols | No protocol; care varies with clinical judgment and patient preferences | Rigid protocols to minimize variations | Flexible protocols adapted to individualized care, in search of verifiable outcomes |
Necessity | A necessity for all patients | Extraneous to care | A necessity for employing unvalidated tests and interventions |
End results | Unverifiable care | Theoretical knowledge | Verifiable outcome-based care |
Impact on care | Usual care | Imposes research in the interest of others | Regulates care in the interest of current patients |