Students

HLTH2110 – Clinical Epidemiology and Biostatistics for Health Sciences

2022 – Session 2, In person-scheduled-weekday, North Ryde

General Information

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Unit convenor and teaching staff Unit convenor and teaching staff Unit Co-Convenor
Michael Swain
By appointment
Lecturer
Huan Lin
By appointment
Tutor
Virginia Mandelburger
By appointment
Michael Swain
Credit points Credit points
10
Prerequisites Prerequisites
Admission to BChiroSc and CHIR1101 or CHIR113 or ANAT1001 or HLTH108 or BIOL1210 or BIOL108
Corequisites Corequisites
Co-badged status Co-badged status
Unit description Unit description
An introductory unit on the principles of evidence based health practice. This unit covers a range of issues in research including: subjectivity and objectivity, different research strategies, evaluation and interpretation of data and ethical issues. Concepts of efficacy, effectiveness, clinical and statistical significance and critical appraisal of published work are introduced.

Important Academic Dates

Information about important academic dates including deadlines for withdrawing from units are available at https://www.mq.edu.au/study/calendar-of-dates

Learning Outcomes

On successful completion of this unit, you will be able to:

  • ULO1: Explain the role of research and scientific enquiry in health sciences, explain the importance of evidence based health care
  • ULO2: Compare relative merits of different levels of ‘evidence’
  • ULO3: Critically appraise available information including published work related to health sciences
  • ULO4: Explain ethics, confidentiality, conflict of interest and related issues in the context of research and clinical practice
  • ULO5: Use spread sheets and a software such as Minitab for basic statistical analyses of data
  • ULO6: Interpret basic epidemiological and statistical terms such as confidence intervals, effectiveness, efficacy, error, incidence, mean, median, mode, prevalence, probability, reproducibility, risk, sample size, sampling, standard deviation, sensitivity, significance, specificity and validity

General Assessment Information

Grade descriptors and other information concerning grading are contained in the Macquarie University Assessment Policy.

All final grades are determined by a grading committee, in accordance with the Macquarie University Assessment Policy, and are not the sole responsibility of the Unit Convenor.

Students will be awarded a final grade and a mark which must correspond to the grade descriptors specified in the Assessment Procedure (clause 128).

To pass this unit, you must demonstrate sufficient evidence of achievement of the learning outcomes, meet any ungraded requirements, and achieve a final mark of 50 or better.

Further details for each assessment task will be available on iLearn.

Late Submissions

Unless a Special Consideration request has been submitted and approved, a 5% penalty (OF THE TOTAL POSSIBLE MARK) will be applied each day a written assessment is not submitted, up until the 7th day (including weekends). After the 7th day, a grade of ‘0’ will be awarded even if the assessment is submitted. Submission time for all written assessments is set at 11.55pm. A 1-hour grace period is provided to students who experience a technical concern.  

 For example:

Number of days (hours) late

Total Possible Marks

Deduction

Raw mark

Final mark

1 day (1-24 hours)

100

5

75

70

2 days (24-48 hours)

100

10

75

65

3 days (48-72 hours)

100

15

75

60

7 days (144-168 hours) 

100

35

75

40

>7 days (>168 hours)

100

-

75

0

For any late submissions of time-sensitive tasks, such as scheduled tests/exams, performance assessments/presentations, and/or scheduled practical assessments/labs, students need to submit an application for Special Consideration.

 

 

Assessment Tasks

Name Weighting Hurdle Due
Practical work 20% No Weekly
Assignment 20% No 9th of September
Final examination 60% No Session 2 Exam Period

Practical work

Assessment Type 1: Practice-based task
Indicative Time on Task 2: 8 hours
Due: Weekly
Weighting: 20%

 

Exercises based on Practical sessions. These will be short answer questions based on that week's practical content, to be completed in conjunction with practical tasks.

 


On successful completion you will be able to:
  • Explain the role of research and scientific enquiry in health sciences, explain the importance of evidence based health care
  • Compare relative merits of different levels of ‘evidence’
  • Critically appraise available information including published work related to health sciences
  • Explain ethics, confidentiality, conflict of interest and related issues in the context of research and clinical practice
  • Use spread sheets and a software such as Minitab for basic statistical analyses of data
  • Interpret basic epidemiological and statistical terms such as confidence intervals, effectiveness, efficacy, error, incidence, mean, median, mode, prevalence, probability, reproducibility, risk, sample size, sampling, standard deviation, sensitivity, significance, specificity and validity

Assignment

Assessment Type 1: Report
Indicative Time on Task 2: 8 hours
Due: 9th of September
Weighting: 20%

 

Assignment would include data analysis and interpretation as well as critical appraisal of published articles.

 


On successful completion you will be able to:
  • Explain the role of research and scientific enquiry in health sciences, explain the importance of evidence based health care
  • Compare relative merits of different levels of ‘evidence’
  • Critically appraise available information including published work related to health sciences
  • Explain ethics, confidentiality, conflict of interest and related issues in the context of research and clinical practice
  • Use spread sheets and a software such as Minitab for basic statistical analyses of data
  • Interpret basic epidemiological and statistical terms such as confidence intervals, effectiveness, efficacy, error, incidence, mean, median, mode, prevalence, probability, reproducibility, risk, sample size, sampling, standard deviation, sensitivity, significance, specificity and validity

Final examination

Assessment Type 1: Examination
Indicative Time on Task 2: 24 hours
Due: Session 2 Exam Period
Weighting: 60%

 

This will be a 2 hour written examination with questions (MCQ, true/false, filling in the blank and short answers) related to all lecture and practical material.

 


On successful completion you will be able to:
  • Explain the role of research and scientific enquiry in health sciences, explain the importance of evidence based health care
  • Compare relative merits of different levels of ‘evidence’
  • Critically appraise available information including published work related to health sciences
  • Explain ethics, confidentiality, conflict of interest and related issues in the context of research and clinical practice
  • Interpret basic epidemiological and statistical terms such as confidence intervals, effectiveness, efficacy, error, incidence, mean, median, mode, prevalence, probability, reproducibility, risk, sample size, sampling, standard deviation, sensitivity, significance, specificity and validity

1 If you need help with your assignment, please contact:

  • the academic teaching staff in your unit for guidance in understanding or completing this type of assessment
  • the Writing Centre for academic skills support.

2 Indicative time-on-task is an estimate of the time required for completion of the assessment task and is subject to individual variation

Delivery and Resources

As a student enrolled in this unit, you will engage in a range of face-to-face and online learning activities, including online lectures, practical classes, readings, and video resources. Details can be found on the iLearn site for this unit.

Delivery mode

1. One 2-hour online lecture per week, weeks 1-8, 10-13.

2. Ten 2-hour practicals per student, starting from week 2-8, 10-12.

3. Four to five hours per week self-instructional learning, readings from the text and exercises on lecture topics

 

Class times and locations

Lecture times: 2-hours each week starting from week 1. Available online via the unit’s iLearn page

Practicals: 2-hours each week, starting from week 2. Practical classes will be in the 06EaR PC Labs OR 11WW PC Labs or ONLINE (only if enrolled in online offering), see the timetable for details https://timetables.mq.edu.au/2022/

You are advised to bring a USB memory stick for practical classes. Practical group allocations will be finalised in Week 1. Students must attend their allocated class. Participation in practical classes is recommended.

NB: This unit involves some / at least one essential on-campus learning activities/activity which will be delivered in accordance with a COVID Safe plan. You will be expected to attend relevant on-campus activities unless the Public Health Order and/or University advice changes.

Resources

Recommended texts

  • An introduction to medical statistics by Martin Bland (4th edition, 2015; earlier editions should be fine)
  • Statistics at square one / T.D.V. Swinscow and M.J. Campbell. 10th ed., London: BMJ Books, 2002 (In addition to library copy, this book is available online via http://www.bmj.com/thebmj)
  • Hoffmann et al. Evidence-Based Practice Across the Health Professions. 2 Edn. ISBN: 9780729541350, Elsevier Australia.
  • Minichiello et al. Research Methods for nursing and health science. 2 Edn; ISBN: 9781740095969; Pearson Education Australia.

Further reading

  • Straus, S.E et al. 2005. Evidence-Based Medicine; 4 Edn; Churchill Livingstone
  • Access readings from LEGANTO

Useful web-resources

http:/www.mq.edu.au/library  (Macquarie University library site; list and links to many databases and Journals)

http://www.cochrane.org (Cochrane Collaboration, the most reliable source of evidence in health care)

http://www.pedro.org.au/ (Physiotherapy Evidence Database)

 

Unit web page

The URL of the HLTH2110 iLearn site is:  https://ilearn.mq.edu.au/

You will be asked for a username and password.  Your username is your student MQID.  Your MQID and password have been mailed to you by the University.  If you have lost them go to the student portal:  http://students.mq.edu.au/home/

Unit Schedule

List of topics by week

The topic titles are given as a guide only.

Week

Online lecture Topic

Monday to Wednesday Practical

Week 1

Unit overview, Excel, Data, Summarising,  and Graphing Categorical Data

No Practical

Week 2

Summarising and Graphing Continuous data;  populations and samples

Introduction to Excel

Week 3

Confidence Intervals

Excel & Minitab

Week 4

Clinical Epidemiology, EBP, what is evidence;

where and how to find evidence (Hierarchy of evidence)

Excel & Minitab

Week 5

Research Planning and Research Designs - I

Research design

Week 6

Research Designs - II

Minitab

Week 7

Hypothesis Testing - one and two groups

Research methods

 

STUDY BREAK WEEKS

 

Week 8

Hypothesis Testing - Regression

Minitab

Week 9

Labour Day Public Holiday – No lecture

No practical

Week 10

Hypothesis Testing - Proportions

Minitab

Week 11

Research in Clinical Practice (outcome measures)

Minitab

Week 12

Ethics, Conflict of Interest and Confidentiality in Health Research

Minitab

Week 13

Unit summary. Revision (if students request any specific topic)

No Practical

Huan (Jaslene) Lin: Lectures for weeks 1-3, 7-10

Amber Beynon: Lectures for weeks 4-6, 11-12

Maria Benitez de Mandelburger: Tutorials for weeks 2-12

 

Policies and Procedures

Macquarie University policies and procedures are accessible from Policy Central (https://policies.mq.edu.au). Students should be aware of the following policies in particular with regard to Learning and Teaching:

Students seeking more policy resources can visit Student Policies (https://students.mq.edu.au/support/study/policies). It is your one-stop-shop for the key policies you need to know about throughout your undergraduate student journey.

To find other policies relating to Teaching and Learning, visit Policy Central (https://policies.mq.edu.au) and use the search tool.

Student Code of Conduct

Macquarie University students have a responsibility to be familiar with the Student Code of Conduct: https://students.mq.edu.au/admin/other-resources/student-conduct

Results

Results published on platform other than eStudent, (eg. iLearn, Coursera etc.) or released directly by your Unit Convenor, are not confirmed as they are subject to final approval by the University. Once approved, final results will be sent to your student email address and will be made available in eStudent. For more information visit ask.mq.edu.au or if you are a Global MBA student contact globalmba.support@mq.edu.au

Academic Integrity

At Macquarie, we believe academic integrity – honesty, respect, trust, responsibility, fairness and courage – is at the core of learning, teaching and research. We recognise that meeting the expectations required to complete your assessments can be challenging. So, we offer you a range of resources and services to help you reach your potential, including free online writing and maths support, academic skills development and wellbeing consultations.

Student Support

Macquarie University provides a range of support services for students. For details, visit http://students.mq.edu.au/support/

The Writing Centre

The Writing Centre provides resources to develop your English language proficiency, academic writing, and communication skills.

The Library provides online and face to face support to help you find and use relevant information resources. 

Student Services and Support

Macquarie University offers a range of Student Support Services including:

Student Enquiries

Got a question? Ask us via AskMQ, or contact Service Connect.

IT Help

For help with University computer systems and technology, visit http://www.mq.edu.au/about_us/offices_and_units/information_technology/help/

When using the University's IT, you must adhere to the Acceptable Use of IT Resources Policy. The policy applies to all who connect to the MQ network including students.

INCLUSION AND DIVERSITY

Social inclusion at Macquarie University is about giving everyone who has the potential to benefit from higher education the opportunity to study at university, participate in campus life and flourish in their chosen field. The University has made significant moves to promote an equitable, diverse and exciting campus community for the benefit of staff and students. It is your responsibility to contribute towards the development of an inclusive culture and practice in the areas of learning and teaching, research, and service orientation and delivery. As a member of the Macquarie University community, you must not discriminate against or harass others based on their sex, gender, race, marital status, carers' responsibilities, disability, sexual orientation, age, political conviction or religious belief. All staff and students are expected to display appropriate behaviour that is conducive to a healthy learning environment for everyone.

PROFESSIONALISM

In the Faculty of Medicine, Health and Human Sciences, professionalism is a key capability embedded in all our courses. 

As part of developing professionalism, students are expected to attend all small group interactive sessions including clinical, practical, laboratory, work-integrated learning (e.g., PACE placements), and team-based learning activities. Some learning activities are recorded (e.g., face-to-face lectures), however you are encouraged to avoid relying upon such material as they do not recreate the whole learning experience and technical issues can and do occur. As an adult learner, we respect your decision to choose how you engage with your learning, but we would remind you that the learning opportunities we create for you have been done so to enable your success, and that by not engaging you may impact your ability to successfully complete this unit. We equally expect that you show respect for the academic staff who have worked hard to develop meaningful activities and prioritise your learning by communicating with them in advance if you are unable to attend a small group interactive session.

Another dimension of professionalism is having respect for your peers. It is the right of every student to learn in an environment that is free of disruption and distraction. Please arrive to all learning activities on time, and if you are unavoidably detained, please join activity as quietly as possible to minimise disruption. Phones and other electronic devices that produce noise and other distractions must be turned off prior to entering class. Where your own device (e.g., laptop) is being used for class-related activities, you are asked to close down all other applications to avoid distraction to you and others. Please treat your fellow students with the utmost respect. If you are uncomfortable participating in any specific activity, please let the relevant academic know.


Unit information based on version 2022.02 of the Handbook