Epidemiology and Research Methods
Epidemiological methods for health sciences dissertations — study designs (RCT, cohort study, case-control, cross-sectional, ecological — hierarchy of evidence), measures of effect (relative risk, odds ratio, hazard ratio, NNT, NNH, ARR), confounding and bias (selection bias, information bias, confounding — multivariable regression adjustment, propensity score matching), systematic review and meta-analysis (PRISMA 2020, Cochrane Handbook, RevMan/R metafor — forest plots, funnel plots, heterogeneity I-squared), GRADE evidence quality assessment (Certainty of Evidence framework), and UK epidemiology data sources (ONS Mortality Statistics, PHE/UKHSA surveillance data, NHS Digital Hospital Episode Statistics — HES, CPRD, Clinical Practice Research Datalink).