Monthly Archives: April 2013

Don’t Pay For That Test Prep Course Yet!

Posted on April 1, 2013 by DR MERL Reviews

In this observational study, investigators assessed whether students taking the Australian/New Zealand version of our MCAT performed better if they took a test preparation course or not, and found that taking prep courses was not associated with better test scores. … Continue reading →

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Top 10 Methodologic And Statistical Flaws In Medical Studies

Posted on April 1, 2013 by DR MERL Reviews

Warren Buffet said “bad terminology is the enemy of good thinking.” This articles reviews common errors investigators make when conducting and reporting medical research. Included are choosing inappropriate unit of analysis (e.g., events rather than patients), confusing correlation with association, … Continue reading →

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Outcomes Are Not enough: A Call For A More Comprehensive (And Useful) Program Evaluation

Posted on April 1, 2013 by DR MERL Reviews

This article provides a brief overview of the history of program evaluation and the major paradigms that have driven program evaluation research while providing a good argument for why outcomes-based models are not good enough. Instead, to address the complexities … Continue reading →

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A Centralized Biostatistics Group Is Good For Academic Medical Centers

Posted on April 1, 2013 by DR MERL Reviews

This consortium makes a well-reasoned argument that all major academic medical centers should have a centralized biostatistics group. This model benefits biostatisticians as well as researchers from all departments and units of the medical center.—Laura Willett, MD Welty LJ, et … Continue reading →

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