A focus on empirically supported outcomes: A commentary on search for empirically supported treatments

Psychiatry in Australia has prepared clinical practice guidelines, and in doing so identified empirically supported treatments, but has been loath to implement those guidelines. Clinical psychology, excluded from being reimbursed by health insurance, has shown less interest in systematically identifying such treatments. There is considerable official interest in how to make science inform practice, with comments from the payers that routine outcome assessment would be used in setting reimbursement schedules. Efficacy, effectiveness, and efficiency are popular words, evidence-based medicine is to be adopted by all, but no one is clear about how this will be achieved. Does all this sound familiar?