Page 4 - Noninvasive Diagnostic Techniques for the Detection of Skin Cancers

Preface

The Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ) conducts the Effective Health
Care Program as part of its mission to organize knowledge and make it available to inform
decisions about healthcare. As part of the Medicare Prescription Drug, Improvement, and
Modernization Act of 2003, Congress directed AHRQ to conduct and support research on the
comparative outcomes, clinical effectiveness, and appropriateness of pharmaceuticals, devices,
and healthcare services to meet the needs of Medicare, Medicaid, and the Children’s Health
Insurance Program (CHIP).
AHRQ has an established network of Evidence-based Practice Centers (EPCs) that produce
Evidence Reports/Technology Assessments and Comparative Effectiveness Reviews to assist
public- and private-sector organizations in their efforts to improve the quality of health care.
Technical Briefs are the most recent addition to this body of knowledge.
A Technical Brief provides an overview of key issues related to a clinical intervention or
health care service—for example, current indications for the intervention, relevant patient
population and subgroups of interest, outcomes measured, and contextual factors that may affect
decisions regarding the intervention. Technical Briefs generally focus on interventions for which
there are limited published data and too few completed protocol-driven studies to support
definitive conclusions. The emphasis, therefore, is on providing an early objective description of
the state of science, a potential framework for assessing the applications and implications of the
new interventions, a summary of ongoing research, and information on future research needs.
Transparency and stakeholder input are essential to the Effective Health Care Program.
Please visit the Web site (www.effectivehealthcare.ahrq.gov) to see draft research questions and
reports or to join an e-mail list to learn about new program products and opportunities for input.
Comparative Effectiveness Reviews will be updated regularly, while Technical Briefs will serve
to inform new research development efforts.

Carolyn M. Clancy, M.D. Jean Slutsky, P.A., M.S.P.H.
Director Director, Center for Outcomes and Evidence
Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality

Stephanie Chang, M.D., M.P.H. Elisabeth U. Kato, M.D., M.R.P.
Director Task Order Officer
Evidence-based Practice Program Center for Outcomes and Evidence
Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality

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