It's Great! Oops, No It Isn't: Why Clinical Research Can't Guarantee The Right Medical Answers [Hardcover]

Ronald Gauch (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: November 14, 2008 | ISBN-10: 1402089066 | ISBN-13: 978-1402089060 | Edition: 1

This book dissects medical research methodology and through a penetrating inquiry into its triumphs and tragedies explains why correct answers are so hard to achieve. What emerges from this inquiry is the unexpected and stunning conclusion that medical researchers can never be sure that they’ve ended up with a truthful answer. In It’s Great! readers learn why the quest for knowledge through clinical trials is fraught with problems that even the best researchers cannot overcome. A fascinating gallery of cases illustrates the perils investigators face. Particular emphasis is given to the “clinical trial”, the so-called gold standard for medical research, and its seven fatal flaws show succinctly why getting the right research answer is so problematic. In example after example, the author challenges the notion that medical research is too complex for the average citizen to comprehend. Understanding the imperfect world of clinical research allows the reader to step up and begin to ask his or her own questions, to challenge conclusions, to have doubts and not be afraid to raise them. People who care about their health and the health of others should not be innocent bystanders; they have a right, maybe even an obligation to become involved. After all, it’s their health that is at stake.

Editorial Reviews

Review

From the reviews: “Written by someone well versed in the complexities of biomedical research, this easy to understand book provides valuable information on the difficulty of finding the truth about drug safety and efficacy. (Dr.) Gauch has done us all a great service by explaining in a lucid and insightful manner why we need to be cautious in interpreting the results of preliminary, unconfirmed, or less than definitive clinical trials. This book is must reading not only for those involved in biomedical research, health care professionals, students and disease related society members but for the general public as well.” (Stuart D. Cook, M.D. Past President, University of Medicine and Dentistry of New Jersey - currently the Ruth Dunietz Kushner and Michael Jay Serwitz Professor of Neurology and Neurosciences at the University) Press Release: Heidelberg, 8 October 2008 It's Great! Oops, No It Isn't New book explains why correct answers in medical research are so hard to achieve The truth is, few people know the first thing about clinical research. The public reads about a medical research project that announces unbelievable results for a miraculous drug. Some years later, another investigation completely wipes out those initial favorable findings. For example, a 1994 headline in the San Francisco Chronicle announced "Hormones cut women's risk of heart disease" but by 2001 that optimistic report was reversed as evidenced by a Washington Post article titled, "Hormones don't protect women from heart disease." People are confused because they do not understand the process behind these conflicting results. A new book can help - It's Great! Oops, No It Isn't: Why Clinical Research Can't Guarantee The Right Medical Answers by Ronald Gauch dissects medical research methodology. Through a penetrating inquiry into its triumphs and tragedies, it explains why correct answers are so hard to achieve. What emerges from this inquiry is the unexpected and stunning conclusion that medical researchers can never be sure that they've ended up with a truthful answer. Gauch shows readers why the quest for knowledge through clinical trials is fraught with problems that even the best researchers cannot overcome. A fascinating gallery of cases illustrates the perils investigators face. Particular emphasis is given to the "clinical trial," the so-called gold standard for medical research. Its seven fatal flaws show succinctly why getting the right research answer is so problematic. In example after example, the author challenges the notion that medical research is too complex for the average citizen to comprehend. Understanding the imperfect world of clinical research allows the reader to step up and begin to ask his or her own questions, to challenge conclusions, to have doubts and not be afraid to raise them. People who care about their health and the health of others should not be innocent bystanders. They have a right, maybe even an obligation, to become involved. After all, it's their health that is at stake. Ronald Gauch, Ph.D., spent most of his adult life involved in the application of research methods to clinical investigations. He has been a primary player in important medical studies of major pharmaceutical companies. He has also seen the research world from the academic side at Marist College. He is an excellent presenter, winner of a number of speaking competitions and awarded best teacher recognition on two occasions while at Marist College. As a consultant to the pharmaceutical and healthcare industries, and working with a number of local health-related organizations, he is involved with both the academic and practical world of medical research. The author is available for interview. Ronald R. Gauch It's Great! Oops, No It Isn't Why Clinical Research Can't Guarantee The Right Medical Answers 2008. XIV, 298 pages. Hardcover €39.95, $59.95, £31.99 ISBN 978-1-4020-8906-0 Contact: Joan Robinson tel [phone] (Germany) "It’s Great!Oops, No It Isn’t offers a behind-the-study look at how medical research is actually conducted, from the first protocol design to publication of the results. … Gauch’s book should be a must-read for anyone considering participating in a clinical trial." (Miller-McCune Turning Research into Solutions, March, 2009)

Product Details

• Hardcover: 312 pages
• Publisher: Springer; 1 edition (November 14, 2008)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1402089066
• ISBN-13: 978-1402089060
• Product Dimensions: 9.3 x 6.4 x 0.9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.2 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (1 customer review)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,448,048 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Most Helpful Customer Reviews

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars For folks who want to better understand the studies., February 8, 2009

By 

S. Becker (Boston, MA USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: It's Great! Oops, No It Isn't: Why Clinical Research Can't Guarantee The Right Medical Answers (Hardcover)

I read this book because I'm a mom who is really concerned about the medications I take and give to my kids. Too often, it seems like a "wonder drug" turns out to be a dud and has to be removed from the market. You read about a study in the newspaper one day, and then it is contradicted just a little while later. "It's Great" helped me understand why this happens. It describes challenges in clinical trials - and includes a section on statistics that is easy to follow. The book is really comprehensive, and it includes information about how politicians, the media and the government are involved in the process. It doesn't hold back on criticizing the FDA and the pharmaceutical industry, but it also supports the people who do research. I think it would be good for doctors to read this book, too, so they can better explain 'the studies' to their patients.