"We have the best medical schools, the most sophisticated labs, the most advanced training of any nation on the globe. Yet we're not doing a very good job harnessing our collective knowledge and experience on behalf of better medicine. Less than 1 percent of our health care spending goes to examining what treatments are most effective -- less than 1 percent. And even when that information finds its way into journals, it can take up to 17 years to find its way to an exam room or operating table. As a result, too many doctors and patients are making decisions without the benefit of the latest research."

Remarks by President Barack Obama at the Annual Conference of the American Medical Association, June 2009

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Change Agent Pathways

What is Translational Science?

Educator

Educate future health care professionals.

Translational Health Sciences Researcher

Generate translational knowledge to understand and optimize scientific, social, political, professional, and organizational processes shaping evidence implementation.

Health Care Practice Leader

Apply evidence from clinical and translational research to everyday practice.