Outcomes research and the allied health professional

Outcomes research has become increasingly important in recent years in evaluating the quality of health care and in making policy and clinical decisions. There has been a growing awareness of the need to adapt outcomes research methods for the assessment of treatments provided by the allied health research and professional communities. This is imperative due to the growth of managed care plans and the need for professional legitimization and separate reimbursement of services. This article provides an overview of the history of the outcomes research movement, with specific reference to federal government involvement. Differences between efficacy and effectiveness research are delineated, the problems in undertaking outcomes studies to evaluate allied health-provided treatments are discussed, and strategy for increasing the use of outcomes research in the assessment of allied health treatments is given.