Rethinking Clinical Research

Karen B. Schmaling is a professor of clinical psychology at Washington State University. She has over 150 publications that have been cited over 12,000 times. Her research has been supported by the US National Institutes of Health and National Science Foundation. Robert M. Kaplan is a senior scholar at Stanford University's Clinical Excellence Research Canter. He previously served as Associate Director of the National Institutes of Health, and as Chief Science Officer for the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality. Kaplan was elected to US National Academy of Medicine in 2005.

• Introduction; Part I. Fundamentals: 1. 'Can it work? Does it work? Is it worth it?'; 2. Core research tools; 3. Clinical research ethics; Part II. Rethinking research: 4. Asking the right questions; 5. Bias in randomized controlled trials; 6. Is bigger always better?: On sample size, statistical significance, and big data; 7. Achieving transparency; 8. Understanding and restraining study costs; 9. Implementation: getting the right interventions to market; 10. Health outcomes: a comprehensive approach; 11. Confronting the crises in peer review and academic publishing; 12. Ontologies: promoting a shared scientific mission; Part III. Case studies: 13. Case study: treating gastroesophageal disease with Omeprazole; 14. Case study: statin therapy for primary prevention of heart disease; 15. Case study: cancer screening; 16. Case study: antidepressant medications; 17. Conclusions and recommendations.