Making Sense of Research

In the era of evidence-based health care, every practitioner needs to be able to find and critically evaluate the best available research. This book is a clearly written, carefully crafted, practical guide to understanding research that is suitable for any student embarking on a career in the health professions. It will also be very useful for the practitioner who desires to inform his or her clinical practice with an evidence-based perspective. While the desire for understanding research may be present and growing, many are often stymied by not knowing where or how to begin. With this book, Dr. Menard has provided a wonderful tool to help educators, researchers and practitioners in all health professions begin the journey towards research literacy. From the first chapter that introduces the reader to the scientific method, Dr.Menard shares her wisdom and expertise about what constitutes evidence and how
evidence-based practice originated, and gives a very useful step-by-step guide to how to read a scientific journal article. Her approach is to demystify science and evidence, without losing any of the rigor. Subsequent chapters present how to find research articles, discuss types of research studies, from case series and cohort studies to randomized, placebo-controlled clinical trials, together with how to read quantitative, qualitative and mixed methods studies, and statistical concepts are explained in clear and simple terms that even those with limited mathematical backgrounds can easily understand.. The final chapter takes the reader through the process of writing a case report. Even for practitioners not likely to engage in laboratory bench work or become actively involved in conducting clinical trials, the ability to report on cases they see in their practices is an essential and vitally important skill. In this way, much more can be contributed to the evidence base, for the betterment of patients and practitioners alike.