Michael Loughlin

Manchester Metropolitan University, University of Buckingham

Papers

Total Citations

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About

Michael Loughlin is a leading voice in the philosophy of medicine and the critical appraisal of evidence-based medicine (EBM). His work interrogates the epistemological and ethical foundations of clinical practice, arguing that the EBM movement, while valuable, risks reducing complex human care to narrow technical rationality. His most cited paper, “Continuing the evidence‐based health care debate in 2006” (52 citations), published in the *Journal of Evaluation in Clinical Practice*, curates a landmark collection of scholarship that probes the nature of evidence, the limits of statistical reasoning, and the role of values in clinical decision-making. This work has shaped ongoing debates about what counts as “evidence” and how to integrate patient perspectives. In “Virtue, progress and practice” (10 citations), Loughlin draws on philosophical traditions to argue that genuine progress in medicine requires not just better data, but the cultivation of practical wisdom and moral character among clinicians. His contributions are essential reading for anyone seeking to understand the deeper tensions between scientific rigor and humanistic care in modern healthcare.