Grenier, Catherine

The Haute Autorité de Santé and the standardization of medicine - 2020.


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The health care sector, like many other sectors, is not immune to the standardization process. Unlike other sectors, however, it is characterized by hazard. It is subject to a permanent evolution of knowledge and diagnostic and therapeutic means. This is the basis for the concept of evidence-based medicine (EBM): basing clinical decisions on the best evidence.Falling within this context is the work of the Haute Autorité de santé (HAS) (French National Authority for Health), an independent public body of a scientific nature, with broad missions. The HAS evaluates drugs, medical devices, and procedures; evaluates and recommends good professional practice and draws up public health recommendations; and measures and improves quality in health, social, and medical-social institutions.HAS’s missions mean that it is fully involved in the standardization process, but in a unique way. It achieves this by respecting a few key principles: the participation of the professionals and representatives of the patients and users concerned, transparency, independence, and the management of conflicts of interest.