Regarding the domains of patient-oriented clinical research, i.e. diagnostic, prognostic and clinical intervention research, the student is able to

1. stipulate and structure the clinical research question by exploring the corresponding clinical context and by searching and critically appraising the literature
2. apply the most optimal method of data collection for a given clinical research question, taking validity, accessibility, efficiency, and costs into account
3. discuss the theoretical, practical, ethical, and legal aspects of patient-based data collection, storage, coding, and processing and include these aspects in a clinical study
4. analyze clinical data transparently, using descriptive and inferential statistical methods, and present and discuss the main results
5. translate study results into clinical practice anticipating impact, usefulness, and cost-effectiveness and communicate these with health professionals

Health care is changing fast with continuous development of medical technology, either as intervention or diagnostic. Better understanding of the working mechanisms of disease stimulates development of targeted drug therapies. Technological developments, such as the use of robotics, may improve health care. And research in the field of genetics and biomarkers makes personalized health care possible. In clinical practice decisions about the implementation of those new technologies are needed. These are decisions on the level of the patient about the best treatment option in that particular case; decisions on the level of the hospital about the purchase of a new Da Vinci Robot (for instance) for surgical procedures; and decisions on macro level in terms of guideline development and reimbursement of care, such as new expensive drugs. These decisions should be made on the basis of the best available evidence.   As a Biomedical Science student you are primarily being trained to perform research that can deliver high-quality evidence to support such decisions. As a physician in training you will be confronted with results from clinical research on a daily basis. This minor is designed to train your skills in clinical research and your scientific attitude in the broadest way. Topics of the minor are: intervention research; designing your own trial data collection; using state of the art applications prediction modeling; first steps in making personalized health care possible journal club; training your critical scientific thinking cost-effectiveness; making decisions from a societal perspective An important feature of the minor is learning from and being situated in clinical practice. You will perform a clinical research project that is supervised by a medical specialist and a research methodologist. During the minor, in-depth background of clinical research and the research process, explaining the principles and methods used to obtain quantitative evidence are taught. After this minor you will be well equipped to organize, perform, and critically appraise clinical research in practice!

Relation This Minor is part of the Bachelor's program. For Biomedical Science students, it will prepare for a bachelor internship and/or master specialization in the areas of clinical research, epidemiology and/or health technology assessment (HTA). For medical students, this minor prepares for the master research internship and may be of value for those who opt for combining clinical work with medical research.

Key words Patient-oriented clinical research, diagnostic research, prognostic research, clinical interventions, evidence based medicine (EBM), epidemiology, health technology assessment (HTA)

Examination Next to several formative assessments, the final grade of this minor will be based on the following parts: written exam, covering theoretical aspects of diagnostic, prognostic, and intervention research methods (50%). This exam is split in 2 parts (each 25%): one will be administered at the end of Q9 and one at the end of Q10. a research report (40%) and an oral presentation and discussion (10%) at the final research symposium concerning the clinical research project All components must be graded 5.5 or higher to pass the course.