The 5 R’s: An Emerging Bold Standard for Conducting Relevant Research in a Changing World

This paper makes an excellent case for the importance of research that is relevant and the results of which can (relatively) rapidly be implemented in practice. I agree with Dr. Schwenk about the importance of this piece, and that it should guide the focus of family medicine research. I think it can be broadened; there is a sense in this piece that the purpose of the research should be to guide the practice of physicians (and other providers) in the care of their patients. The purpose of health care research should be the improvement of the health of our population. Physicians and other providers can be vehicles for helping to do this, but their practices are only a piece of the picture; people's lives are the more important piece. Referring to "patients" keeps the discussion provider-centric, as one is defined as a "patient" by having a provider. Health research needs to enhance the health of people whether or not they access medical care. Why do such a large number of people for whom research has shown low-dose aspirin would be beneficial not take it? I don't know. Maybe it is because the providers don't know to recommend it, or because their patients don't follow their provider's advice to (because of issues in their lives), or because it is the people who don't have providers that do not. We need a population-health perspective, and that is not the same thing as saying "patients".

Competing interests: None declared