Robert Oster, Section Publications Officer; Carol Bigelow, 2009 Section Program Chair; and Patrick Arbogast, 2009 Section Chair

Officers of the Teaching of Statistics in the Health Sciences (TSHS) Section are pleased to recognize the section’s JSM award winners for 2008 and 2009.

In 2008, the Young Investigator Award was given to Eleanor Pullenayagum of McMasters University for “Teaching Bayesian Statistics in a Health Research Methodology Program.” The Best Contributed Paper Award was given to Scott Emerson of the University of Washington for “The Scientist Game: Power and Subterfuge in the Statistical Design of Studies.”

The 2009 Best Contributed Paper Award went to H. James Norton of the Carolinas Medical Center and George W. Divine of Henry Ford Hospital for “Use of Interesting Examples in Teaching Introductory Biostatistics: Three Controversies and Two Paradoxes.” This was a wonderfully accessible and visually appealing slide show of examples of statistics gone awry. As the authors pointed out—and the audience experienced for themselves—presenting misuses of statistics in everyday life is a highly effective means of piquing interest in statistical literacy. The presentation can be requested by emailing Norton at jnorton@carolinas.org.

The 2009 Best Invited Session Paper Award goes to Steven C. Grambow, Cynthia J. Coffman, Lawrence H. Muhlbaier, Linda S. Lee, ativan generic name lorazepam Haiyan Zhou, and William E. Wilkinson of Duke University School of Medicine and the Clinical Research Training Program for “Duke Medicine Online Core in Clinical Research: Customized Environment for Practicing Health Professionals.” Grambow described the key features of their highly structured program: multimedia-based, interactive, and hands-on.

Honorable mentions go to Dominique Haughton, Mayokun Soremekun, and Guillaume Weisang of Bentley University for “The Virtual Data Analysis Classroom: A Live Demonstration.” Haughton spoke to us ‘live’ from a village in France and demonstrated her success with the Centra software system and technology for distance teaching in real time.

2010 Awards

The section will offer the following awards in 2010: Young Investigator Award, Best Invited Paper Award, Best Contributed Paper Award, and Best Contributed Poster Award. The TSHS Executive Committee also is developing guidelines for a new award for outstanding teaching (of statistics in the health sciences). Click here for more information about section awards and their guidelines.

Newsletter Archive

All issues of the Teaching of Statistics in the Health Sciences Newsletter from 1990 through the present can be found here. Feel free to look at these and see what our section has done over the years. The TSHS Executive Committee welcomes comments on the newsletter and web site.