Andy Oxman completed his medical training in the USA in 1979 and then moved to Norway where he worked as a general practitioner in northern Norway. From 1984 to 1994 he was at McMaster University in Canada. He moved back to Norway in 1994 and began work at the Health Services Research Unit at the National Institute of Public Health, which subsequent to several redisorganisations is now part of the Norwegian Knowledge Centre for the Health Services. His research interest is in developing and evaluating methods of helping people to make informed choices about healthcare