Why Individual Patient Differences Matter

At the end of this month, a diverse group of health care stakeholders will convene at a public meeting in Washington, DC, to discuss one of the unintended consequences of comparative effectiveness research (CER) and patient care today: using population average findings to make treatment decisions for individual patients.

Using CER to determine which treatments work best for a disease or medical condition is important to improving the quality of health care, but researchers must also ask what works best for whom and under what circumstances. That’s because patients do not all respond in the same way to the same treatment, so the best treatment for an individual patient may vary. Recognition of these differences, known as heterogeneity, is growing, as is increased awareness of the need for better methods to predict variability in patients’ response to treatments and consider it appropriately in treatment and coverage decisions. 

Join us on November 30 as we explore these issues at "The Myth of Average: Why Individual Patient Differences Matter," a conference hosted by the National Pharmaceutical Council, the National Health Council, WellPoint, and 17 other cosponsor organizations. The conference features keynote presentations from Dr. Joe Selby, executive director of the Patient-Centered Outcomes Research Institute, and Dr. Patrick Conway, chief medical officer at the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services. They will be joined by a number of thought leaders representing patient organizations, academia, policymakers, payers, and the pharmaceutical industry.

There is no charge to attend the conference, which is being held at the Omni Shoreham Hotel in Washington, DC, but space is limited. Registration information is available on NPC’s website.