expertpanel

An expertpanel, often written as expert panel, is a group assembled to provide expert assessment, judgment, or guidance on a defined topic. Members are selected for recognized knowledge, expertise, or experience, and the panel typically operates independently of the requesting organization. The goal is to synthesize evidence, challenge assumptions, and deliver recommendations, standards, or policy positions. In practice, expert panels are used in medicine, public health, regulatory affairs, and technology assessment, among other fields. The term is also used as a label for organizations or platforms that appoint such panels.

Formation and process: Panels are usually limited in size to ensure focused deliberation and are composed of individuals with relevant specialties and diverse perspectives. Conflicts of interest are disclosed, and rules govern recusal and voting. The process often includes topic scoping, evidence gathering, systematic review, deliberations, and a final report or set of recommendations. Some panels rely on formal consensus methods such as Delphi or structured voting, while others publish recommendations with accompanying rationale and uncertainties.

Applications: In healthcare, expert panels develop clinical guidelines, formulary recommendations, or device approvals. In public policy, they are used for risk assessments, product safety rulings, or technology assessments. In research and industry, panels help establish standards, ethics approvals, or best-practice frameworks.

Benefits and limitations: Expert panels can improve credibility and decision quality but may suffer from biases, groupthink, or dominance by outspoken members. Representativeness, transparency of methods, and timely updates are common concerns.

Governance and outputs: Outputs from expert panels may include guideline documents, position statements, or consensus reports. Many panels publish methods and disclosures of conflicts of interest, and assign plans for updates as new evidence emerges.

See also: expert elicitation, guideline development, peer review.