Main description:

Do you want to keep up with clinical research but find that you are confused by the way
it is presented in the journals?

The answer is Understanding Clinical Papers.

Understanding Clinical Papers, Third Edition explains important research–related topics using actual
papers from clinical journals to illustrate how to understand and evaluate published research. The
authors use an imaginative pictorial approach for an enjoyable and informative read.

This new edition has been fully revised and expanded to include several new chapters on
qualitative and mixed methods research, as well as new quantitative material. With updated
examples drawn from current research, Understanding Clinical Papers remains a valuable resource
for all healthcare professionals.

Praise for previous editions

What makes this book unique is that each point presented is illustrated with excerpts from actual
papers, often three or four per chapter this is a very effective teaching device.
Journal of the American Medical Association

This book should be an essential addition to the personal libraries of all health care workers who
need to use articles in journals. In these days of evidence–based medicine, this should apply to all
physicians, nurses and other health professionals. Oncology

The writing style is amazingly clear and does not require formal course work in biostatistics or
epidemiology . This friendly informal paperback book is a bargain at the price and should have
wide use. We strongly recommend it for beginners and for easy entry into a complex domain
and to experts who we think will enjoy it and who will find it useful as they teach, advise and help
others. Quality in Health Care

The great strength of this book lies in the lively and accessible way in which it is written, making
it particularly appealing to its target audience of practitioners and clinicians. Dealing with an
already well–covered topic which can be dry and unpalatable, the authors manage to present their
material in a colourful and interesting way. The language is clear and readable. It is well–structured,
logically mirroring the sequence of good quality papers. The examples from studies are well
chosen, interesting and at times entertaining in themselves. References are informative and help to
contextualise the information. This is a most useful book which I would recommend in particular for
students of all disciplines and practitioners involved in research activity.
Accident & Emergency Nursing

In summary, this book provides a great overview of how to read clinical papers in an informed way
it provides accessible and simple skills to assess research. Journal of Substance Use

Back cover:

Do you want to keep up with clinical research but find that you are confused by the way
it is presented in the journals?

The answer is Understanding Clinical Papers.

Understanding Clinical Papers, Third Edition explains important research–related topics using actual
papers from clinical journals to illustrate how to understand and evaluate published research. The
authors use an imaginative pictorial approach for an enjoyable and informative read.

This new edition has been fully revised and expanded to include several new chapters on
qualitative and mixed methods research, as well as new quantitative material. With updated
examples drawn from current research, Understanding Clinical Papers remains a valuable resource
for all healthcare professionals.

Praise for previous editions

What makes this book unique is that each point presented is illustrated with excerpts from actual
papers, often three or four per chapter this is a very effective teaching device.
Journal of the American Medical Association

This book should be an essential addition to the personal libraries of all health care workers who
need to use articles in journals. In these days of evidence–based medicine, this should apply to all
physicians, nurses and other health professionals. Oncology

The writing style is amazingly clear and does not require formal course work in biostatistics or
epidemiology . This friendly informal paperback book is a bargain at the price and should have
wide use. We strongly recommend it for beginners and for easy entry into a complex domain
and to experts who we think will enjoy it and who will find it useful as they teach, advise and help
others. Quality in Health Care

The great strength of this book lies in the lively and accessible way in which it is written, making
it particularly appealing to its target audience of practitioners and clinicians. Dealing with an
already well–covered topic which can be dry and unpalatable, the authors manage to present their
material in a colourful and interesting way. The language is clear and readable. It is well–structured,
logically mirroring the sequence of good quality papers. The examples from studies are well
chosen, interesting and at times entertaining in themselves. References are informative and help to
contextualise the information. This is a most useful book which I would recommend in particular for
students of all disciplines and practitioners involved in research activity.
Accident & Emergency Nursing

In summary, this book provides a great overview of how to read clinical papers in an informed way
it provides accessible and simple skills to assess research. Journal of Substance Use

Contents:

Preface to the First Edition vii

Preface to the Third Edition ix

PART I SETTING THE SCENE: WHO DID WHAT, AND WHY 1

1 Some Preliminaries 3

2 The Abstract and Introduction 7

3 The Aims and Objectives 14

PART II DESIGN MATTERS: WHAT TYPE OF STUDY IS IT? 21

4 Descriptive Studies: Qualitative 23

5 Descriptive Studies: Quantitative 29

6 Analytic Studies 35

7 Intervention Studies 42

8 Mixed Methods Research 50

PART III THE CAST: FINDING OUT ABOUT THE SUBJECTS OF THE RESEARCH 53

9 The Research Setting 55

10 Populations and Samples in Quantitative Research 59

11 The Sample in Qualitative Research 63

12 Identifying and Defining Cases 67

13 Controls and Comparisons 70

PART IV ESTABLISHING THE FACTS: STARTING WITH BASIC OBSERVATIONS 75

14 Identifying the Characteristics of Quantitative Data 77

15 Summarising the Characteristics of Quantitative Data 84

16 Identifying and Summarising the Characteristics of Qualitative Data 90

17 Measuring the Characteristics of Participants: Quantitative 93

18 Measuring the Characteristics of Participants: Qualitative 99

19 Measuring the Characteristics of Measures 102

20 Measurement Scales 106

21 Exploring and Explaining: Topic Guides 118

PART V ESTABLISHING MORE OF THE FACTS: SOME COMMON WAYS OF DESCRIBING RESULTS 121

22 Fractions, Proportions, and Rates 123

23 Risks and Odds 125

24 Ratios of Risks and Odds 128

PART VI ANALYSING THE DATA: ESTIMATION AND HYPOTHESIS TESTING 135

25 Confidence Intervals for Means, Proportions, and Medians 137

26 Confidence Intervals for Ratios 143

27 Testing Hypotheses the p–Value 147

PART VII ANALYSING THE DATA: MULTIVARIABLE METHODS 161

28 Measuring Association 163

29 Measuring Agreement 170

30 Linear Regression 175

31 Logistic Regression 185

32 Measuring Survival 190

33 Systematic Review and Meta–Analysis 196

34 Analysing Qualitative Data 206

35 Results in Text and Tables 211

36 Results in Pictures 219

37 The Discussion and Conclusions 227

References 231

Index 239