Much like in many fields, research is reached a point of sophistication that it is no longer possible for any single person to perform all aspects of the research process. Statistics is now sufficiently sophisticated, that professional statistics help is nearly mandatory to perform top level research. Modern statistical methods are complex and the mathematics behind them are complicated. Becoming fully fluent in statistical methods requires years of training
At Stat59 we can assist in your research by allowing you to be the content expert while we take care of the methodology and mathematics.
Much as it is now increasingly rare for general practitioners to practice intensive care, or for home mechanics to repair their own cars, most high quality published manuscripts include statistical analysis performed by professionals. Science is increasingly competitive and research is moving more quickly. The competition is using professional statisticians to make their work more publishable.
Many journals now include review by a professional statistician as a mandatory part of the review process. At Stat59 we will prepare your research to be ready for this process and to hold the the highest statistical standards
Stat59 was developed to address the five most commonly seen opportunities for improvement:
Inital errors in study design are common. Without understanding how the data will be analyzed it is very difficult to understand which data to collect and how to collect it. Even small errors, like failure to randomize the subjects properly, can weaken the validty of a study and prevent its publication. Furthermore, many errors in study design simply cannot be corrected later, leading to a tremendous waste of time and money. At Stat59 we will work with your team from the beginning to ensure that the initial study design is the best possible design for your research project
Well meaning researchers often tabulate their data on spreadsheets. Many go so far as to even total the columns, and calculate basic statistics such as mean and standard deviation. Unfortunately, such spreadsheets are entirely unsuitable for more sophisticated statistical analysis. Furthermore, errors in these spreadsheets are easy to commit and hard to find as the spreadsheets contain no way to ensure data is valid
The Stat59 web platform will provide your research team an easy to use web interface for data entry. Data entry is seamless, and validated in real time to minimize errors. The web platform can be accessed simultaneously by any number of researchers from your team, without the need to send a single spreadsheet back and forth between members.
Purchasing traditional statistics software like SAS, minitab, or SPSS is similar to purchasing a bronchoscope. It is a useful tool, but can be very harmful if used without training. Statistics software is designed primarily for statisticians, and assumes that the user knows which test to use. As the software usually does not know the origin of the data or the design of your study, it will happily perform the wrong statistical test and give the wrong answers. Common mistakes are such things as calculating the mean of categorical variable, calculating the average postal code, or using Fisher's exact test when the basic test assumptions are not met.
Choosing the wrong statistical test is often not discovered until the peer review process. When the statistical test needs to be changed it may involve repeating the analysis. As the analysis will lead to different numbers and often different conclusions, it may lead to a very time consuming rewrite of the manuscript. The Stat59 platform is designed to prevent the wrong test from being done by matching data models carefully to statistical tests, and by careful asssessment of the study design
For many researchers who have not written a multitude of papers, it can be difficult to translate their ideas and numbers into a narrative manuscript. Furthermore, many written guidelines for manuscript prepartion exist, but are often specific to certain study designs.
ManuBot - a manuscript templating engine - will analyze your study design and data, correlate them with existing publication guidelines, and generate a manuscript template. Simply cut-and-paste the template into your usual manuscript editing software or word processor, and the template will guide through the process. In most cases the ManuBot will write a large portion of the methods and include references for the statistical methods used.
For certain peer reviewers of most journals are becoming more and more sophisticated. It is not common to see sophisticated comments such as:
ManuBot will analyze your manuscript and look for common causes of concern for reviewers. ManuBot will issue a warning on our manuscript template and tell you how to avoid that particular reviewer comment and how to respond to the comment if it should come back to you.
If any of these issues seem familiar to your team, the Stat59 solution can help move your team foreward.Starting a project is FREE and there are no obligations. Please feel free to start your project and see how our services might fit your needs.
Stat59 costs a fraction of the costs of hiring a professional statistician. Pricing include all software licensing.
Please contact us for a personalized no obligation quote for your project.
