{EPIDEMIOLOGY SUBJECT} original critique on article. PLEASE follow instructions that are given and READ article below

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Final Project Step 2:

For this second step of your final project, you will prepare an original critique of your assigned study in the form of a short paper. You should first provide an overview of the study, using appropriate terminology, and drawing on material we have covered in the course thus far. In your response, you should address each of the five elements described below, which will form the basis of your critique. After reviewing each of the elements delineated below, summarize your findings by discussing which of the elements appear to be the strongest components of the work, and which appear to be the weakest. The latter (i.e., the apparently weak elements of the study) may suggest potential areas for revision, which will be addressed in future steps.

Again, this step will be submitted individually but discussed as a group.

1. What is the overall question this study is addressing?
a. Write this in terms of the main exposure and main outcome

i. In most cases, the exposure and outcome are embedded right in the title of the article; e.g., BPA and all-cause mortality

2. How did the investigators measure the exposure?
a. What is your assessment of the quality of this measure does it provide an

accurate reflection of the true exposure level?

3. How did the investigators determine the outcome?
a. What is your assessment of the outcome ascertainment was the outcome

appropriately defined and properly measured?

  1. How did the investigators identify or enroll study participants?

    1. What is your assessment of the ascertainment method were the appropriate

      subjects included in the study?

    2. What was the sample size of the study, including the number of subjects with and

      without the outcome, and was it adequate to address the study question?

  2. What are the main conclusions provided by the study authors regarding the association between the main exposure and the main outcome?

    1. Overall, how might study errors have influenced the investigators interpretation of the relationship between the exposure and the outcome?

    2. Do you agree with study authors main conclusions?

Once again, while you should develop information and ideas for your critique through discussion with your group, each member of the group needs to submit their own answers to receive credit for this step.

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Final Project Step 2 Length:

 Approximately 500 words
 No fewer than 400; not more than 1,000

General Formatting (here and going forward):

There are no strict rules on margins, fonts, or citation style; but I offer the following guidelines:  Font:

 11-point; Times New Roman, Arial, or, my new favorite, Arial Nova  Margins:

 1-inch square  Citations:

I suggest you use AMA reference style, as illustrated by the Journal of the American Medical Association. The relevant information can be found in the References section of JAMAs instructions for authors page (see below).

For our purposes, these are the most important guidelines, with my slight modifications to the original JAMA language shown in brackets:

Number references in the order they appear in the text; do not alphabetize. In text, tables, and legends, identify references with superscript Arabic numerals [or Arabic numerals within parentheses, placed immediately following the relevant sentence. Do not use author names for in-text citations]. When listing references, follow AMA style and abbreviate names of journals according to the journals list in PubMed. List all authors and/or editors up to 6; if more than 6, list the first 3 followed by “et al.”

Examples of reference style:

  1. Youngster I, Russell GH, Pindar C, Ziv-Baran T, Sauk J, Hohmann EL. Oral, capsulized, frozen fecal microbiota transplantation for relapsing Clostridium difficileinfection. JAMA. 2014;312(17):1772-1778.

  2. Murray CJL. Maximizing antiretroviral therapy in developing countries: the dual challenge of efficiency and quality [published online December 1, 2014]. JAMA. doi:10.1001/jama.2014.16376

  3. Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services. CMS proposals to implement certain disclosure provisions of the Affordable Care Act. http://www.cms.gov/apps/media/press/factsheet.asp?Counter=4221. Accessed January 30, 2012.

  4. McPhee SJ, Winker MA, Rabow MW, Pantilat SZ, Markowitz AJ, eds. Care at the Close of Life: Evidence and Experience. New York, NY: McGraw Hill Medical; 2011

– https://jamanetwork.com/journals/jama/pages/instructions-for-authors

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The exact formatting of citations is of secondary importance, as long as the list of references is complete, and the relevant information can be easily found. When citing references within the text of your paper, please use Arabic numbers (standard or superscript), not author names.