THE LOCAL CLINICAL SCIENTIST - A BRIDGE BETWEEN SCIENCE AND PRACTICE

The local clinical scientist brings the attitudes and knowledge base o f the scientist to bear on the problems that must be addressed by the clinician in the consulting room. The problems of inadequate generaliz ability are reduced by a recognition of the value of local observation s and local solutions to problems. However, these observations and sol utions benefit by the scientific attitude of the clinician and are sub jected to the same need for verifiability that greets all scientific e nterprises. The clinical setting is viewed as analogous to a scientifi c laboratory, and by doing so, the scientist-practitioner model is ena cted.