Clinical studies succeed or fail on the strength of their statistics. This course takes a practical approach to address the fundamental statistical concepts essential for non-statisticians involved in clinical research. Through lectures, discussions and in-class exercises, the instructor explores clinical study designs, hypothesis testing, sample size calculations, assumptions, controls, endpoints, data-management principles, data presentations and analysis plans, methods of analysis, and conclusions. You'll learn how to interpret the statistics commonly encountered in clinical research as well as how to communicate effectively with statisticians. The approach is practical, simple and qualitative. No previous background in statistics is required.

Learning Outcomes

At the conclusion of the course, you should be able to

• Identify quantitative methods for summarizing data
• Explain concepts such as variability, confidence intervals, hypothesis testing, and p-values
• Distinguish various study designs and identify techniques to avoid bias in clinical studies
• Knowledgeably review the medical literature
• Comfortably communicate with a professional biostatistician

Topics Include

• Estimation and hypothesis testing
• Parametric vs nonparametric tests
• Clinical trial designs
• Data-driven decision making

Professional Credit

UCSC EXTENSION Approved by the California Board of Registered Nursing, Provider Number 13114, for 20 contact hours