Strapped for Time? Assess the Best Available Evidence Quickly
Submitted by Livia Edegger on
There is just not enough time in a day! We've all been there.
Time is limited and information overload too common. Yet, we are expected to make evidence-informed decisions in our practice. In the world of substance abuse prevention and health promotion, we try to sift through all of the available evidence (from research, practice, and other sources) to inform our practice, programme and policy decisions – especially under a time crunch or when the evidence is limited. And not all of that information is of equal relevance or quality.
The European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control (ECDC) developed a framework for rapidly assessing risk (e.g. of a new drug appearing on the streets or pattern of drug use), and critically determining the quality of evidence (e.g. the methods used to gather evidence) that can be applied in the substance abuse prevention context.
Rapid risk assessment is needed to evaluate the potential risk or concern to public health, and should be based on the best available evidence to determine:
If a response is needed
The urgency and magnitude of response
The design and selection of intervention
The broader management of the incident or situation at hand