Sensible answers to strange questions: generating evidence in special circumstances

Designing a study usually involves consulting a statistician, typically to check the sample size is adequate and the analysis feasible. In this talk, however, I will discuss my role in the design of some studies that were definitely not typical. I will discuss the ways that some unusual research questions, in alcohol, in clinician behaviour and in alternative medicine, have led me to get involved with some interesting study designs. I will describe my experiences of leaving my statistician’s desk and computer to help collect data in the very real world and present some of the unusual papers that our students have contributed to on blood pressure measurement, alcohol and sobriety, and thermometry.

This talk is part of the Introduction to Study Design and Research Methods module, which is part of the MSc in Evidence-Based Health Care.

This is a free event and members of the public are welcome to attend.