Syllabus

Course name Research Skills IV (Evidence-Based Medicine) IX semester

Lecturer surname, Irina Sakhelashvili, Professor
first name Phone: 599 22 12 20; e-mail: irinesakhe@gmail.com
Manana Maridashvili, Professor
Phone: 599 16 15 15; e-mail: manana.maridashvili@gmil.com

Consultation days are fixed weekly according to the timetable as well as online at
the specified address.
Course status Mandatory
ECTS credits 2 ECTS (1 credit - 25 hours) – 50 hrs.
Lecture 13 hours
Seminar 17 hours
Midterm exam 1 hours
Students’ workload
Final exam 2 hours
Contact hours - 33 hours
Individual work – 17 hours
Course Prerequisite Research Skills III (Biostatistics & Epidemiology), Health Informatics
Course Goal(s) The aim of the course is to teach students the principles of evidence-based medicine,
search systems and methods of searching for the valid information/data for effective
diagnosis and generation of evidence-based results, determination of the validity,
the meaning, and the applicability into practice of clinical research evidence
findings. Mastering EBM increases the confidence of physicians for decision making,
the quality of care, and their abilities to communicate clearly and efficiently with
colleagues, other health professionals, and with patients and their families.
Teaching-learning Lecture – a process in which both a lecturer and a student take part. The basic aim of
forms the lecture is to help students to comprehend the major notions of the subject taught
which implies interaction and creative and active perception of the material.
Attention is paid to basic concepts, definitions, designations, assumptions. The
lecture provides scientific and logically consistent cognition of basic logically
complete concepts. Facts, examples, schemes, drafts, experiments, and other visual
aids help explain the idea conveyed by the lecture. The lecture ensures the correct
analysis of the scientific dialectical process and is based on the ability of the students
to perceive and understand main scientific problems.
Seminar - under the supervision of a lecturer a group of students find and perceive
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 additional information, prepare presentations, write essays, etc. This enables
students to deepen their knowledge of the themes studied at the lecture. At the
seminar reports are presented and discussed, conclusions are made. The lecturer
coordinates these processes.

Discussion – collaborative exchange of ideas among a teacher and students or among

students for the purpose of furthering students thinking, learning, problem solving,
understanding, or literary appreciation. Participants present multiple points of view,
respond to the ideas of others, and reflect on their own ideas in an effort to build
their knowledge, understanding, or interpretation of the matter at hand. Discussions
may occur among members of a small group, or whole class and be teacher-led or
student-led.
Debate – requires students to work as individuals and as a team to research critical
issues, prepare and present a logical argument, actively listen to various perspectives,
differentiate between subjective and objective information, ask cogent questions,
integrate relevant information, develop empathy, and formulate their own opinions
based on evidence.

Case study – Phrases a clinical question in a way that allows seeking and application
of evidence, find the best evidence for a given clinical question, critically appraise
the evidence for the major types of clinical questions, describe the limitations of
EBM.
Quiz – woring with searching systems and finding the evidence, appraise own
findings.
Learning Outcomes
General Competences
Knowledge and Understanding:
A student will be able to:
 Deep and Systemic knowledge of the field and its critical analysis that covers some modern achievements of
the sphere, provides basis for the development of innovative, new, creative ideas.
Skills:
 Obtain information from various sources, develop large-scale information and critically evaluate it, use
information collected during professional activities.
 Search for new, creative ideas to solve complicated problems in multidisciplinary environment using modern
methods and approaches.
 Provide with the critical analysis of complicated information, innovative synthesis of information, evaluation
and making decisions.
 Presentation of own conclusions, arguments and research results both in academic and professional
environment observing the standards of academic ethics.
 Show practical skills to work with colleagues, professional subordination / adaptation skills, ability to use new
technologies.
 Able to adapt to a new environment - work with colleagues, show professional subordination / adaptation
skills.
Responsibility and Autonomy:
 Show practical skills to work with colleagues, professional subordination / adaptation skills, ability to use new
technologies.
 Able to adapt to a new environment - work with colleagues, show professional subordination / adaptation
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skills.
 Manage multidisciplinary environment and adapt by using new strategic approaches.
 Contribute to the development of professional knowledge and practice.

Field-Specific Knowledge
A student will:
 Determine the principles of evidence-based medicine.
 Identify the searching systems in medicine.
 Determine the methods of searching and finding the valid information/sources/data.
 Define EBM and describe the steps of the practice of EBM.
 Enumerate the different purposes for searching the scientific biomedical literature.
 Describe the difference between background and foreground questions.
 Rephrase issues arising in patient care as correct clinical questions (PICO questions).
 Conduct efficient searches of clinical evidence using the most appropriate terms and other tools (filters, operators,
and clinical queries) in databases available through the Internet, in accordance with the type of evidence of
interest.
 Critically appraise the most common types of clinical research papers (interventions, harm, diagnostic tests, and
systematic reviews).
 Apply the evidence to individual patients.
Field-Specific Competences
9. Use of knowledge, skills and principles based on evidence.
 The use of evidence in decision making process
 Determining the scientific/clinical problem, putting the relevant questions and finding the answer in relevant
literature through using the appropriate information sources.
 The active use of evidences obtained through different literature sources and making the conclusions
regarding the health conditions of patient on the basis of assessing the quality of evidences.
Assessment system

The grading system shall allow:

a) Five positive grades
a.a) (A) Excellent – 91-100 grade points;
a.b.) (B) Very good – 81-90 grade points;
a.c) (C) Good – 71-80 grade points;
a.d) (D) Satisfactory – 61-70 grade points;
a.e) (E) Acceptable – 51-60 grade points.

b) Two types of negative grades:

b.a) (FX) Fail – 41-50 grade points, meaning that a professional student requires some more work before
passing and is given a chance to sit an additional examination after independent work;
b.b) (F) Fail –40 and less grade points, meaning that the work of a professional student is not acceptable and
he/she has to study the subject anew.

In the case of FX assessment, the student can set for the make-up exam no less than 5 days after the
announcement of the examination results.

The minimum score for passing the midterm and final exams is 50% of the maximum score. The same
applies to the integrated course modules. In each module, the student must score 50% of the points assigned

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to each module. If a student does not score the required points in a course or one or two modules of an
integrated course, they are eligible to take the makeup exam.

The minimum score for admission to the final exam is 50% of the sum of ongoing and midterm assessments.

If a student fails to pass the make-up exam, he/she will study the course / the whole integrated course (all
modules) again.

In the case of failure of the make-up exam, a student shall study the course/integrated course again with all
its modules.

In the case of failure of the make-up exam, a student shall study the course/integrated course again with all
its modules.
ASSESSMENT FORMS, COMPONENTS, METHODS AND CRITERIA

Interim evaluation Final exam evaluation Final evaluation

Activity 40 points Midterm Exam 20 points Final Exam 40 points 100 points

Search for the Test Test

evidence – two
topics, each is
assessed by 1 grade
point, total – 8 (2x4)
grade points.

Case study – 8
topics, each one is
assessed by 4 grade
points, total – 32
(8x4) grade points.
Quiz – work with searching systems and find the evidence:
Activity Each student is evaluated 4 times per semester, each task consists of 2 topics/open
questions; each relevant infornmation earns 1 grade point, total – 8 grade points.

Case Study – each student is evaluated 4 times per semester, each case consists of 2
tasks; each one is assessed with max. 8 grade points; total – 32 grade points.
Rubric:
Phrases a clinical question in a way that allows seeking and application of evidence –
1 grade point
Find the best evidence for a given clinical question – 1 grade point
Critically appraise the evidence for the major types of clinical questions – 1 grade
point
Describe the limitations of EBM – 1 grade point.
Midterm Exam – Written and oral examination

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 Test includes 5 open questions (10 points) and 20 MCQs (10 points)
Each correctly pointed MCQ answer earns 0,5 point; total -10 points.
Rubric:
Midterm Exam Each correctly pointed answer earns 0,5 point.
Each incorrectly pointed answer earns 0 point.

Rubric for open questions:

2 points - the knowledge of the topic is exhaustive, precisely determines functions of

structural entities and their interrelations
1 point – the knowledge of the topic is poor, unable to formulate properly the
functions of structural entities and their interrelations.
0 point - doesn’t know the topic, unable to formulate the functions of structural
entities and their interrelations.

Test includes 8 open questions (16 points) and 48 MCQs (24 points)
Each correctly pointed MCQ answer earns 0,5 point; total -24 points.
Rubric:
Each correctly pointed answer earns 0,5 point.
Each incorrectly pointed answer earns 0 point.
Final Exam
Rubric for open questions:
2 points - the knowledge of the topic is exhaustive, precisely determines functions of
structural entities and their interrelations
1 point – the knowledge of the topic is poor, unable to formulate properly the
functions of structural entities and their interrelations.
0 point - doesn’t know the topic, unable to formulate the functions of structural
entities and their interrelations.
Textbook and course materials
Literature Textbooks
1. Evidence-Based Medicine, S. E. Straus, P. Glasziou, et al., 2019, Elsevier,
2. Fundamentals of Evidence-Based Medicine, Kameshwar Prashad, Second Edition,
2013, Springer
Additional reading
3. Evidence-Based Clinical Reasoning in Medicine, Thomas Brown, Sonali Shah,
2013, People’s Medical Publishing House - USA
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 4. User’s Guide to the Medical Literature: Essentials of Evidence-Based Clinical
Practice, Gordon Guuyatt, Drummond Rennie, Maureen O. Meade, Deborah J.
Cook, 2015, McGraw Hill Education.

Course content

Study Teaching-learning hours Topic

week methods
I Lecture 1 Topic 1. Introduction to the Evidence-Based Medicine. Goals,
principles and components of EBM. Steps in practicing EBM.
Seminar 1 Limitations and misconceptions of EBM.
Syllabus presentation
II Lecture 1 Topic 2. Formulating a focused clinical question. Components of
Seminar 1 focused clinical questions. Variations of PICO. Types of
questions.
III Lecture 1 Topic 3. Specifying a proper study design for the type of
Seminar 1 question. Finding the current best evidence. Information
resources. Searching the PubMed. Online sources. Print sources.
IV Lecture 1 Topic 4. Therapy: fundamental concepts. Introduction. Need for
control group. Randomization. Intention-to-treat analysis.
Seminar 1 Concepts related to P value. Confidence interval. The process of
randomized controlled trail.
V Lecture 1 Topic 5. Therapy: critical appraisal: part 1 (validity). Critical
Seminar 1 appraisal questions for a therapy paper. Relevance assessment.
Validity assessment. Applicability and application.
Lecture 1 Topic 6. Therapy: Critical appraisal: part 2 (interpreting results).
VI Measures of effect of treatment. NNT (Number needed to treat).
Seminar 1
Odds ratio. Diagnostic test: fundamental concepts.
Lecture 1 Topic 7. Diagnostic test: validity appraisal. Validity assessment.
VII
Seminar 1 Results assessment. Applicability assessment. Application.
VII Midterm exam 1
VIII Lecture 1 Topic 8. Diagnostic test: critical appraisal – part 2 (interpreting
Seminar 1 results). Two-level (dichotomous) test results. Likelihood ratio.
IX Lecture 1 Topic 9. Systematic reviews and meta-analysis: fundamental
concepts. Origin and scope of meta-analysis. Meta-analysis:
Seminar 1 critical appraisal. Relevance. Validity assessment. Assessment of
results, applicability and application
X Lecture 1 Topic 10. Prognosis. Validity assessment. Results assessment.
Seminar 1 Applicability assessment. Application.
Lecture 1 Topic 11. Advanced topics. Fixed and random effects models.
XI Seminar 1 Hypothesis testing. Examples of critical appraisal.
XII Lecture 1 Topic 12. Clinical scenario. Examples and answers to critical
Seminar 1 appraisal of a diagnosis paper. Critical appraisal questions for a
therapy paper and meta-analysis paper.
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 XIII Lecture 1 Topic 13. Case studies in clinical-reasoning
Seminar 1
XIV Seminar 2 Topic 14. Case studies in clinical-reasoning
XV Seminar 2 Topic 15. Case studies in clinical-reasoning
XVI- XVIII Final exam

XVII-XIX Make-up exam