A multi-dimensional model of clinical utility.
Clinical utility is an increasingly used concept in health care, but one that lacks an agreed formal definition or conceptualization. In this article, I show that the term is commonly used as a synonym for studies of clinical effectiveness and/or economic evaluations and argue that further factors relating to everyday working practice should be included under its auspices. I go on to develop a multi-dimensional model that outlines four factors in practitioners' judgements about clinical utility: appropriateness, accessibility, practicability, and acceptability.
Smart
Andrew
A
Bath Spa University, Sociology, Bath, UK. a.smart@bathspa.ac.uk
D004059:Diffusion of Innovation; D006297:Health Services Accessibility; D006801:Humans; D008962:Models, Theoretical; D010818:Practice Patterns, Physicians'; D011787:Quality of Health Care