When Science and Values Collide: Recalling the Lessons of Evidence-Based HIV Prevention

Excerpt

Although terminology espousing “evidence-based” approaches to the practice of medicine and of public health is a relatively recent contribution to the scientific lexicon [1, 2], recognition of the importance of basing actions to improve health outcomes on sound evidence, rather than relying on subjective beliefs and long-standing traditions, extends back centuries. Nearly 400 years ago, Sir Francis Bacon, often acknowledged as the father of inductive reasoning and a major proponent of the scientific method, cautioned that “confirming and rendering inveterate” past errors was “more hurtful” than “searching after the truth” [3]. Rather than stagnate, Bacon affirmed that the arts and sciences must evolve and that they “should resound…with new works and advances” [3]. …