Why did the Health Advisory Panel establish subcommittees?
The panel formed subcommittees to focus on study issues requiring more intensive discussion or research. Panel members and others with special expertise and/or interest in a particular topic area devoted additional time to work on important issues raised by the panel and interested citizens in the course of the study. The subcommittees performed additional research, explored alternative analyses and developed recommendations for the entire panel to consider. How did input and feedback from the public improve quality? New insights and information were often provided by the general public. Many citizens had special knowledge of past plant operations and technical expertise that was valuable to the research effort. Public input helped scientists see a different perspective and identified special concerns or interests of community members. External scrutiny by diverse groups and individuals improved the study results and was an important component of overall quality assurance. How did rese
