Clinical Practice & Policy: Navigation Guide

An Evidence-Based Medicine Methodology to Bridge the Gap Between Clinical and Environmental Health Sciences

The scientific evidence linking environmental exposures to adverse health outcomes has yet to be compiled using systematic methods with the capacity to inform effective healthcare and policy decision-making. The relevant evidence is largely unfamiliar to health professionals caring for women and men of childbearing age, patients, communities, consumers, and other impacted populations. There is currently no trusted reference or compendium that provides them with timely, evidence-based advice about exposure to environmental contaminants.

To bridge the gap between clinical and environmental health sciences, PRHE has undertaken an interdisciplinary collaboration to develop a systematic and transparent methodology to evaluate the quality of evidence and strength of recommendations about the relationship between the environment and reproductive health. The result of this collaboration---the Navigation Guide--- was published in the May 2011 issue of the journal Health Affairs. View the paper here: http://content.healthaffairs.org/content/30/5/931.full.pdf+html?ijkey=z58MCEPW2X49.&keytype=ref&siteid=healthaff. (Please note: This link requires a subscription. Your institution or university may have a subscription. Please check with them if the link does not work for you.)

Application of the Navigation Guide will result in uniform, simple, and transparent summaries that integrate the best practices of evaluation in environmental and clinical health sciences.

• Learn more about the Working Groups strategy and approach to encourage uptake of the Navigation Guide.
• Explore a timeline of major accomplishments.

Related Publications
Conrad and Becker's "10 Criteria" fall short of addressing conflicts of interest in chemical safety studies – a letter in Environmental Health Perspectives in response to a proposal for addressing conflicts of interest in chemical safety studies. http://ehp03.niehs.nih.gov/article/info:doi/10.1289/ehp.1104385?4c42ad08

Pulling Back the Curtain: Improving Reviews in Environmental Health – an editorial in Environmental Health Perspectives describing the need for improved methods of research synthesis in environmental health science. http://ehp03.niehs.nih.gov/article/fetchArticle.action?articleURI=info%3Adoi%2F10.1289%2Fehp.1002691

Recent Meetings

Navigating the Science: Advancing the Use of Systematic and Transparent Reviews in Environmental Health Science – A March 9-10, 2012 meeting to develop a blueprint to accelerate the uptake of the Navigation Guide methodology in clinical and policy arenas.

• Draft Blueprint Discussion Document
• Participant Biographies
• Agenda