Making Sense of the Results from RCT’s: Calculations & Communication

Workshop Overview

The context for this workshop will be an emphasis on the importance of critical appraisal as an effective way of identifying good-quality evidence with which professionals in the healthcare sector can make decisions about changing practice or introducing an innovation. Other considerations will include the relative weight evidence has in decision-making about different types of intervention, and the factors that are important during decision-taking about the use of a different or new intervention.

Learning Objectives

• To review the types of data used in research
• To review the main effect measures used in RCTs
• To review the statistics necessary to interpreting effect measures used in RCTs
• To calculate five effect measures from data from a published paper of an RCT
• To be able to explain what the effect sizes mean that have been calculated
• To communicate an RCT’s overall results in the context of the care for that condition and factors important in decision-making about changing practice

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Learning Outcomes

• An awareness of the types of data published in the evidence base, and particularly those relevant to RCTs
• A knowledge of the key statistics used in the analysis of RCT results and how to use them to interpret the research results
• A knowledge of how to calculate various effect measures from the data provided in a published paper of an RCT
• A knowledge of how to convert odds ratios to risk ratios
• Increased confidence in interpreting and communicating research results in the context of considering a change in practice

Training Course Location

Participant places are limited in each virtual workshop to ensure optimal interaction between participants and lead trainer. CPD certification (equivalent to 3.5 hours) is available if required. This workshop will take place online, and joining instructions will be sent to you after completion of booking. Participants will be sent pre-reading of a published paper to complete before the start of the session. This course will be taught in English and will take place in GMT.

Why Critical Appraisal? 

Everyone wants good health and effective healthcare. How do we know, however, whether an intervention is truly effective? Many interventions are given with the best of intention but have later been found to be ineffective and therefore a waste of finite healthcare resources.

Moreover, instances of harm from giving certain ‘treatments’ are being reported. It is important that interventions are evaluated in clinical trials before they are widely disseminated. If health-policy decisions are to be truly informed, they need to be based on the best available research evidence; however, how can we decide whether the evidence is trustworthy?

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