Ward Helen - Oxford Handbook of Epidemiology for Clinicians

Oxford Handbook of

Epidemiology
for Clinicians

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Now more than ever clinicians need to understand evidence. Healthcare is evolving rapidly with innovation leading to ever more effective and efficient diagnostic tools, treatments, service delivery, and preventive interventions. Being able to interpret clinical trials, meta-analyses, systematic reviews, and the results of individual investigations and apply these to the patient sitting in front of us is a greater challenge than ever given the volume of evidence being generated. Much of the evidence needed in the consulting room, as in the hospital boardroom, comes from studies of populations, and understanding these kinds of data requires good epidemiological skills and insights.

This handbook is an invaluable means for grasping the principles of epidemiology as applied to everyday clinical practice. It introduces concepts such as distribution, measurement, and risk in relation to diagnosis and management, making them very relevant for medical students and junior doctors. There is a series of helpful worked examples from diagnostics through management and discussion of prognosis which link to the later sections on study design and statistics. Doctors in training will find the very practical sections on finding and summarizing evidence through systematic review and meta-analysis, plus the step-by-step guide to clinical audit, particularly useful. The book also has a valuable reference section that medical students and others studying for professional exams will appreciate giving a structured guide to the epidemiology of some of the most common diseases.

Working with patients and communities to improve health and prevent illness is now all our business. This handbook provides an overview of the relevant evidence with reminders of how to assess risk, deliver brief interventions, and communicate risk to patients.

Many clinicians reading this book will find it opens their eyes to the widespread application of epidemiology and prevention and will embrace it in their pursuit of excellence and evidence-based practice.

Professor the Lord Darzi of Denham PC, KBE