Statistics for Medicine and Health Sciences

The course gives a basic introduction to statistical methods relevant for medicine and health science. The course will provide knowledge of and practice in the application of methods for comparing means and proportions, studying association between continuous variables, and evaluating reliability and validity of measured data. The course deals with descriptive statistics, probability and probability distributions, point and interval estimation, hypothesis testing for continuous and categorical data, correlation and linear regression. The course includes exercises using SPSS.

Knowledge:

After completing the course MH3003, the student should

• have knowledge of different types of variables and probability distributions, and be able to apply the knowledge in relation to statistical analysis of data
• have knowledge of basic terminology and methodological elements within point and interval estimation and hypothesis testing
• have knowledge of methods for estimating correlation and linear association between continuous variables
• have knowledge of the most important assumptions for the chosen method of analysis

Skills:

After completing the course MH3003, the student should be able to

• choose appropriate summary measures and graphical display for describing quantitative data
• perform and interpret results from hypothesis tests (t-test) for mean values in one and two samples, and correspondingly for the non-- parametric alternatives for these tests
• perform and interpret results from hypothesis tests for proportions in one and two samples
• perform and interpret analyses for estimating correlation and linear association between continuous variables
• evaluate reliability of measurements and agreement between two methods of measurement
• perform statistical analyses by using a statistical program package (SPSS)
• justify the chosen method of analysis based on the problem at hand, study design, and variable types

General competence:

After completing the course MH3003, the student should

• have a basis for understanding the presentation of statistical analyses and results in scientific literature

Intensive lectures over the semester. Lectures and exercises. The course will be taught in Norwegian during the autumn semester and in English in the spring semester.