


Lecture Materials



Module 1: Roles of Quantitative Methods in Public Health

> Lecture 1: Biostatistics and Epidemiology within the Paradigm of Public Health (Diener-West)

Describe the role quantitative methods play in addressing public health questions

Define epidemiology and biostatistics, in terms of their relationship to each other, and discuss their roles in collecting, describing, and evaluating data

Differentiate between descriptive statistical methods and inferential statistical methods

> Lecture 2: Epidemiologic Investigation (Kanchanaraksa)

Relate the role of epidemiology in assessing health status in community

Describe the epidemiologic concepts of disease transmission

List and describe the steps necessary to conduct an epidemiologic investigation

> Lecture 3: Exploratory Data Analysis (Diener-West)

Differentiate between types of random variables and different measurement scales

Organize, group, and summarize data using exploratory data analysis techniques

Describe basic summary measures of location and dispersion

> Lecture 4: Tables and Graphs (Diener-West)

Utilize appropriate methods of displaying data in tables and graphs

Interpret data displayed in tables and graphs

Distinguish between graphing on an arithmetic scale versus a logarithmic scale

Module 2: Quantifying and Comparing Public Health Measures

> Lecture 5: Summary Measures [Ratio, Proportion, Rate] (Diener-West)

Distinguish among ratios, proportions, and rates

Identify the properties of ratios, proportions, and rates

Recognize the usefulness of person-time analysis and rates

Describe common rates used in vital statistics

> Lecture 6: Indices of Morbidity and Mortality (Kanchanaraksa)

Define the indices of morbidity and mortality

Recognize the sources of information for morbidity and mortality

Describe the problems in calculating indices of morbidity and mortality

> Lecture 7: Direct and Indirect Methods of Adjustment (Diener-West)

Define strata-specific, crude, and strata-adjusted rates

Describe the influences of strata-specific rates and population composition on crude rates

Describe how differences in population composition confound a comparison between crude rates

Recognize the requirements for the direct method of adjustment and resulting interpretation of adjusted rates

Recognize the requirements for the indirect method of adjustment and resulting interpretation of adjusted rates

Describe the relationship between the standardized mortality ratio and the indirectly adjusted rates

List the relative merits of the two methods of adjustment

Module 3: Quantifying the Natural History of Disease

> Lecture 8: Life Tables (Diener-West)

Identify and calculate the components of a clinical life table

Discuss the assumptions associated with the construction of a clinical life table

Define censored observations in the context of a clinical life table

Define cumulative survival probabilities for a clinical life table

> Lecture 9: Measures of Prognosis (Diener-West, Kanchanaraksa)

Identify the basic concept of natural history of disease

Define five-year survival

Discuss an example of a clinical life table

Explore survival curves

Recognize the assumptions when using a clinical life table

Module 4: Probability Concepts and their Use in Evaluation of Diagnostic and Screening Tests

> Lecture 10: Probability Concepts (Diener-West)

Describe the basic concepts and rules of probability

Apply concepts of probability to the study of health-related events

Describe the concept of independent events

Describe the concept of mutually exclusive events

Recognize the application of conditional probability to public health questions

> Lecture 11: Evaluation of Diagnostic and Screening Tests: Validity and Reliability (Kanchanaraksa)

Define the basic terms used in the evaluation of diagnostic and screening tests

Describe the relationship between predictive value, disease prevalence, and specificity

Apply multi-stage screening procedures to a population

Compute measures of agreement