Practitioners Educational Resources

The Institute for Clinical and Economic Review (ICER) is an independent, non-profit organization whose goal is to create a sustainable healthcare system. By utilizing evidence based analysis of treatments, tests and procedures, it seeks to educate providers, patients, and payors on cost effective best practices. ICER details and summarizes treatment evidence as well as evaluating the strengths and limitations of the available evidence. By taking a populations perspective, meaning analyzing evidence in a way that supports population-level decisions on policies and guidelines regarding appropriate care, pricing, and insurance coverage determinations, ICER promotes a healthcare system that makes the best use of available resources in caring for all patients. These reports are available at https://icer-review.org/. 

Access to Pharmacy Services and Pharmaceuticals in Montana: In 2005, Senate Bill 324, Section 2.2, directed the Montana Department of Public Health and Human Services (DPHHS) to determine the status, needs, and trends of pharmaceutical use in the state. Because pharmacy services may now include clinical monitoring and treatment services in addition to dispensing services, the evaluation was expanded to include this information. The process used to evaluate pharmacy services status, needs, and trends involved secondary analysis of existing data from individual, state, and federal sources. Extra effort was made to identify subpopulations or areas where gaps between needs and access are most likely to occur now or in the near future. Information in the report can be divided into several categories: demographic data related to healthcare access or use, common chronic diseases, pharmaceuticals, and clinical pharmacy services not related to dispensing.

Consumer Reports Best Buy Drugs: Consumer Reports Best Buy Drugs is a public education project of Consumers Union, the publisher of Consumer Reports. Consumers Union is an expert, independent, nonprofit organization whose mission is to work for a fair, just, and safe marketplace and to empower consumers as they buy products and services. The mission of the Consumer Reports Best Buy Drugs project is to provide consumers and their doctors with information to help guide prescription drug choices–based on effectiveness, a drug's track record, safety and price.