RCH > Affiliated Organisations > Clinical Epidemiology and Biostatistics Unit (CEBU)

Teaching

CEBU / CRDO CLINICAL RESEARCH EDUCATION & DEVELOPMENT PROGRAM 2010

An important function of CEBU and CRDO is to provide a comprehensive range of short courses in methods of quantitative research, including planning and conducting research and basic statistical analysis. The courses do not assume any specific prior knowledge, although Getting Started in Clinical Research, Introduction to Biostatistics and Sample Size are designed to be taken in sequence.

Our program of courses and seminars covers protocol development, study design, data management, basic statistics, project management and Good Clinical Practice. Courses and seminars are designed for researchers involved in any type of clinical and public health research are are taught by statisticians, trialists and clinicians.

We have designed the core sequence of courses as a natural progression for researchers in clinical or public health areas, beginning with Getting Started in Clinical Research and proceeding to EpiData, Introduction to Biostatistics and the Stata courses. The Stata courses are run in conjunction with the School of Population Health at The University of Melbourne. The courses are very practically oriented, with much of the work done in small groups working on specific paediatric research topics, and are designed to equip new researchers with the basic tools needed to conduct a study.

A number of hour-long seminars are run at regular intervals throughout the year (free of charge). Please see the MCRI intranet seminar calendar or the CRDO website for details of the next available sessions. These sessions can also be arranged specifically for your department at times convenient to you. Please contact CRDO to arrange this.

Short Courses

Introduction to EpiData 16 April & 16 July		Getting Started in Clinical Research 17 - 21 May
This half-day course provides hands-on training in the EpiData package, a comprehensive simple tool for documented data entry. Further information Registration Form		An introduction to designing a clinical study, including development of the research question and appropriate study design, with an emphasis on concepts and practical issues. Further information Registration Form

Good Clinical Practice & Clinical Trial Management 28 - 29 June		Principles of Data Management 23 June
This two day intensive course will teach you why Good Clinical Practice (GCP) is important in clinical trials and how it applies to various aspects of the trial. It will cover investigator-initiated research, sponsored research as well as ethics and regularory requirements. Further information Registration Form		This course covers concepts of data management focusing on the design and maintenance of a simple database. Further information Registration Form

Introduction to Biostatistics 10 - 12 August		Sample Size Estimation 22 September
A comprehensive introduction to the most commonly used methods of statistical analysis in clinical research, with an exphasis on the key underlying concepts and the interpretation of statistical findings. Further information Registration Form		Introduction to the basic principles involved in determining the number of participants that need to be included in a quantitative study. Further information Registration Form

Introduction to Clinical Trials 19 - 20 October		Introduction to Systematic Reviews 10 - 11 November
An introduction to the design and conduct of trials, providing a thorough overview of skills required to carry out a trial from conception to dissemination. Further information Registration Form		This session covers the principles of systematic reviews with discussion of the Cochrane Collaboration and methods of meta-analysis. Further information Registration Form

Stata Courses

Please refer to the prerequisites before registering for these courses.

Stata I: Introduction to Stata 19-20 april: 8-9 July: 24-25 August: 13-14 Octoberﾠ		Stata II: Data Management & Analysis 3-4 May: 22-23 July: 7-8 Spetember: 27-28 October
One and a half days covering the basic minimum required for examining and describing data using Stata. Prerequisites computer file management within Microsoft Windows, e.g. how to recognise different file types by their extensions and how to move files between directories (N.B. although Stata is available for other platforms such as Macintosh, the courses are Windows-based). elementary statistics, e.g. at the level of CEBU's workshop (3 half-days) Introduction to Biostatistics. Further information Registration Form		One and a half days building on Stata I to cover data cleaning and basic data analysis. Prerequisites this course is a step up from the Stata I course.ﾠ It is designed for people who have completed our Stata I course or feel confident using basic commands in Stata, and creating log-files and do-files.ﾠ The focus of the course is on learning to apply Stata in statistical analysis rather than being a statistics course.ﾠ Therefore, participants are expected to have a basic knowledge of statistics, at least at the level of our Introduction to Biostatistics course. Further information Registration Form

Stata III: Advanced Tips & Tricks 5 October		Stata Graphics Coming Soon
One day course covering advanced data processing and efficient use of Stata. Prerequisites This course is designed for people who have completed Stata I and Stata II and feel confident with the material contained in these courses.ﾠ It will be most useful for those who use Stata frequently to perform data management or other repetitive tasks. Further information Registration Form

Seminars

Getting Oriented To Clinical Research On The RCH/MCRI Campus		Informed Consent Basics Part I: How To Write A Patient Information & Consent Form
This seminar is designed for all new clinical research staff. It outlines the services available to support clinical research on the RCH campus and how to contact the relevant people.		A review of the principles of plain language and the various guidelines for what should be in a Patient Information & Consent form.

Informed Consent Basics Part II: How To Gain Informed Consent		Introduction to GCP
This session reviews how best to provide research participants and their parents with a process that allows them to make an informed decision to participate in clinical research, within ethical & regulatory requirements and hospital policies.		This session gives a brief introduction to the principles of Good Clinical Practice (GCP), which is an international ethical and scientific quality standard to designing, conducting, recording and reporting trials that involve the participation of human subjects.

Clinical Trial Basics		Investigator Responsibilities in Clinical Research
This seminar reviews the types of clinical trials, phases of clinical trials, different methodologies, why clinical trials are important; why high-quality data are important to your clinical trial.		This session reviews the responsibilities of the investigator undertaking clinical research as defined by ICH GCP and NHMRC Guidelines. We discuss how to apply the various guidelines into practice.

How To Run A Research Project
This course covers project management skills as well as other requirements such as essential documents, data management, source data, safety reporting, HREC requirements and more.

Last Updated 25-Jan-2010. Authorised by: John Carlin. Enquiries: Donna De Sair.