To mark forty years since the Medicines Act (1968) doctors, scientists, nurses, patients, professional societies, journal editors, patient groups and other members of the public are providing compelling stories about why evidence-based medicine mattered then and matters now.

This opinion board is hosted set up by Sense About Science and was launched on Saturday 25th October 2008, 40 years after the Medicines Act was passed into law in the wake of the thalidomide tragedy. Scientific and medical bodies have also been encouraged to share and explain their view on evidence-based medicine with a wider public.

Ellen Raphael, UK Director of Sense About Science: "Looking at all these accounts, you realise how little time and attention is given to explaining what evidence-based medicine actually is. And while the scientists who have contributed are united in seeing the importance of remaking the public case for it 40 years on, there are many different views about what the challenges of the next forty years are. There is serious concern for example about over-regulation in clinical trials but also about a number of different therapy areas that still escape the scrutiny of rigorous testing."
Frank Swain, Communications Officer, Sense About Science, "We often discuss evidence-based medicine as the counterpoint to complementary and alternative remedies. But the reality is that there is only one type of medicine – that which is proven to work. A solid evidence base is how we separate useful medicine from ineffective practices."


You can add your own voice to the resource by submitting a form here.