Association for Medical Ethics optimizes Evidence-Based Medicine using the Level I through V system to rate the value of an individual study, and then reviews all the studies on the medical device, product or procedure for an overall rating. The AME Star-Rating System reviews all the studies on a particular topic published in the English literature in peer-reviewed publications on PubMed (a website with a database of all studies published in medical/science journals) and the NIH site (National Institutes for Health for the Department of Health and Human Services). The “search” terms are selected based on the question to be asked and the Levels of Evidence to be examined, which are usually limited to only Levels I and II – the highest levels – since the question is one treatment over another.

AME Star-Rating System will first give the physician or patient an at-a-glance look similar to a report card grade for each individual study as to Level I – V of evidence. Then AME reviews ALL STUDIES as a GROUP to determine an overall rating similar to the hotel star rating system. When AME gives 5 stars, that means the preponderance or high proportion of the studies are Level I, and 1 star means the majority of the studies are Level V. AME 5 Star rating indicates the overall combination of studies has an excellent predictive value for making medical decisions. AME 1 Star rating suggests that physicians and patients should give serious pause in trusting research that is poor for making a decision of one treatment over another or one product over another.

This is a complimentary system that gives physicians and patients the most up-to-date information on medical products and procedures for a disease so they can collectively weigh their choices and make optimal medical judgments based on the total evidence available. Ultimately, the AME Star-Rating System ensures that our physicians are using medical procedures, devices and treatments that have the best results for improving their patients’ lives.