NIH Consensus Development Program


Office of Disease Prevention


Office of Rare Diseases


Office of Dietary Supplements


The Office of Medical Applications of Research (OMAR) within the National Institutes of Health (NIH) is the focal point for evidence-based assessments of medical practice and state-of-the-science on behalf of the medical community and the public.

Located in the Office of the Director, OMAR works closely with NIH Institutes or Centers and Offices to assess, translate and disseminate the results of biomedical research that can be used in the delivery of important health services to the public.

A major responsibility of OMAR is the coordination of the NIH Consensus Development Program. Under this program, OMAR organizes major conferences on complex issues of medical importance to health care providers, patients and the general public. These conferences are open to the public, broadcast on the Internet and free of chargeto participants. The NIH Consensus Statements and State of the Science Statements produced by these conferences are disseminated widely to health care practitioners, policymakers, patients, the media and the general public.

An evidence-based assessment is prepared for each conference topic. The assessment involves a systematic review of the medical literature to define the state of medical practice or science by using rigorous criteria for categorizing the strength of the available evidence.

OMAR routinely meets with scientists, clinicians, representatives from other Federal health agencies, and public representatives to discuss methods to further enhance the mission of the office.

In addition, through the Medicine in the Media program, OMAR seeks to enhance the ability of journalists to critically assess scientific reports and medical findings using an evidence-based approach, and to add context to make reports on research in the popular media more useful to readers.

OMAR is one administrative unit of the NIH Office of Disease Prevention. Other administrative units of ODP are the Office of Dietary Supplements and the Office of Rare Diseases.

For further information about OMAR activities:
Office of Medical Applications of Research
National Institutes of Health
6100 Executive Blvd. Suite 2B03
Bethesda, Maryland 20892-2082
Phone: 301-496-5641
Fax: 301-402-0420 FAX

Overnight Mail Address:

Office of Medical Applications of Research

National Institutes of Health
6100 Executive Blvd. Suite 2B03
Rockville, MD 20852
Phone: 301-496-5641

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