Sue Finch - Academia.edu (original) (raw)

Papers by Sue Finch

Teaching Statistics

Providing a rich context has become a sine qua non of principled teaching of applied statistical ... more Providing a rich context has become a sine qua non of principled teaching of applied statistical thinking. With increasing opportunities to access secondary data, there should be increasing opportunity to work with rich context. We review the contextual information provided in 41 data sets suitable for introductory tertiary statistics teaching, available in the R “datasets” package, and investigate the source information for four data sets. We find failure to describe and retain important contextual information, including aspects that raise questions about the credibility of the data for statistical inference. The sanitization of data reduces the opportunities for learning meaningful lessons in statistical thinking and the real‐world application of statistics. We advocate for teachers and users of such data to be curious about the provenance and context, and for the curators and distributors to examine, where possible, the primary sources, to accurately preserve the context and opti...

Sydney Law Review, 2016

Empirical studies consistently find that law students report high levels of psychological distres... more Empirical studies consistently find that law students report high levels of psychological distress. But are law students at heightened risk among their university peers? The few available comparative studies suggest that law students may experience higher levels of psychological distress than their counterparts in medical degrees. However, data are scarce that compare the distress levels of students in law with students in non-medical programs. The study reported here addressed that gap by comparing the prevalence of psychological distress among law students and non-law students undertaking diverse academic programs at both undergraduate and graduate levels. The findings show that a significant proportion of students in diverse fields and at all levels of study reported high levels of psychological distress. Moreover, the law students’ odds of reporting severe symptoms of psychological distress were not the highest on any of the measures used. Overall, the findings suggest that law ...

BJU International, 2020

To assess the impact of the introduction of multiparametric magnetic resonance imaging of the pro... more To assess the impact of the introduction of multiparametric magnetic resonance imaging of the prostate (mpMRIp) on the number of prostate biopsies performed in Australia. Methods Australian Medicare published statistics from 1 July 2007 to 30 June 2019 were obtained from publically available databases for prostate-specific antigen (PSA) testing, prostate biopsy, and mpMRIp. Analysis was divided into three time periods broadly based on availability of mpMRI to the Australian public: 2007-2012 (no mpMRIp), 2012-2018 (mpMRIp available, privately funded), and 2018-2019 (mpMRIp available with Medicare funding). Introduction of mpMRIp was hypothesised to reduce the number of prostate biopsies performed. PSA testing numbers were used as a control. The economics model, proposed by the Medical Services Advisory Committee (MSAC), was analysed for cost savings. Results Accounting for variations in PSA testing, the introduction of mpMRIp from 2012 coincided with a reduction in the number of prostate biopsies by an average of 354.7/month (95% CI 175, 534.4; P < 0.001). Whilst the number of mpMRIp performed for the initial 12 months was underestimated by the MSAC at 38 470 vs 20 149 (+$8.3 million Australian dollars), we estimate the annual savings from reduced number biopsies and biopsy-associated complications to be 13.2AE9.6million.ConclusionAvailabilityofmpMRIpinAustraliahascorrelatedwithasignificantreductioninprostatebiopsyrates,withanestimatedannualsavingof13.2 AE 9.6 million. Conclusion Availability of mpMRIp in Australia has correlated with a significant reduction in prostate biopsy rates, with an estimated annual saving of 13.2AE9.6million.ConclusionAvailabilityofmpMRIpinAustraliahascorrelatedwithasignificantreductioninprostatebiopsyrates,withanestimatedannualsavingof13.2 AE 9.6 million. Government funding of this diagnostic service has the potential to improve health equity and save on health expenditure.

EP Europace, 2020

Atrial fibrillation (AF) outcome studies play an essential role in the development of clinical ev... more Atrial fibrillation (AF) outcome studies play an essential role in the development of clinical evidence to improve the management of AF patients. Understanding the statistical considerations involved in study design and interpretation is crucial if electrophysiologists are to change practice. In this review, with the guidance of a medical statistician and a clinical trialist we provide an overview of important statistical issues for the clinician, with a focus on clinical studies in AF ablation. Various types of study designs including randomized controlled trials, superiority, and non-inferiority studies are described, along with their implications and limitations. Appropriate sample size calculation is fundamental to ensure statistical power and efficient resource use. Multiplicity in study endpoints is useful to encapsulate the varied effects of an intervention/treatment, although statistical adjustments are required to account for this. Finally, we discuss the limitations with t...

Journal of Speech, Language, and Hearing Research, 2020

Purpose The language processing of Mandarin-accented English (MAE) by older hearing-impaired (OHI... more Purpose The language processing of Mandarin-accented English (MAE) by older hearing-impaired (OHI), older normally hearing (NH), and younger NH listeners was explored. We examined whether OHI adults have more difficulty than NH listeners in recognizing and adapting to MAE speech productions after receiving brief training with the accent. Method Talker-independent adaptation was evaluated in an exposure training study design. Listeners were trained either by four MAE talkers or four Australian English talkers (control group) before listening to sentences presented by a novel MAE talker. Speech recognition for both the training sentences and the experimental sentences were compared between listener groups and between the training accents. Results Listeners in all three groups (OHI, older NH, younger NH) who had been trained by the MAE talkers showed higher odds of speech recognition than listeners trained by the Australian English talkers. The OHI listeners adapted to MAE to the same ...

Higher Education Research & Development, 2021

ABSTRACT University students are known to be at heightened risk among their peers for experiencin... more ABSTRACT University students are known to be at heightened risk among their peers for experiencing psychological distress and mental health difficulties. To date, there have been few interventions designed to reduce stressors in the educational environment. This may be due to limited research investigating course-related correlates of students’ distress. The present study addresses that gap by identifying and exploring the extent to which six common elements of coursework programmes predict students’ scores on measures of depression, anxiety, stress, wellbeing and satisfaction with life. It finds that the investigated coursework experiences account for more variance in students’ wellbeing scores than factors such as financial strain, worry about future employment, English language difficulties and minority group status. It is hoped these findings assist university course coordinators and academic educators to design and develop curricula, teaching approaches and learning environments likely to mitigate students’ high levels of distress and actively support positive mental wellbeing.

Journal of Feline Medicine and Surgery, 2019

Objectives The aims of this study were to describe the treatment outcomes following oral administ... more Objectives The aims of this study were to describe the treatment outcomes following oral administration of a fixed dose (138 MBq; 3.7 mCi) of radioiodine in hyperthyroid cats and to examine the correlation between total thyroxine (TT4) concentrations before and after treatment. Methods This was a retrospective cohort study that documented the TT4 concentration and clinicopathological parameters at the time of diagnosis and after treatment. Logistic regression was used to assess the relationship between TT4 concentrations before and after treatment. The difference in pre- and post-treatment variables between cats that had TT4 concentrations below or within the reference interval (RI) was compared by the Mann–Whitney U-test. Results Of 161 cats, 133 (82.6%) cats had TT4 concentrations within the RI, four (2.5%) cats had TT4 concentrations above the RI and 24 (14.9%) cats had TT4 concentrations below the RI after treatment. The severity of hyperthyroidism at diagnosis, as measured by t...

Proceedings of the Australian Conference on Science and Mathematics Education, Aug 10, 2011

Critical thinking with data is a breadth subject available to any first-year undergraduate studen... more Critical thinking with data is a breadth subject available to any first-year undergraduate student at the University of Melbourne under The Melbourne Model. We first aim to convince students of the relevance of statistical literacy to their academic pursuits and everyday lives. Students can develop the disposition of an enquiring statistical consultant by learning how to review and evaluate critically statistical information and arguments. We engage our diverse group of students in the challenging content of the course in a variety of ways. The statistical material is embedded in a rich context of case studies and real world examples that are varied, relevant, accessible, rich, and interesting. The presentation of lectures is media rich; many examples are taken from the news of the day. Important ideas, concepts and principles are presented in many different ways that do not rely on mathematics. Our approach to assessment is quite different from mainstream statistical subjects; students are asked to make astute judgments of material with quantitative information rather than produce analyses. We use on-line assessment tools, short written assignments, and a larger project to assess students' statistical reasoning and generic skills such as working in groups, giving oral presentations and writing incisive critiques.

AUSTRALIA "Critical thinking with data" is a new "University Breadth Subject"... more AUSTRALIA "Critical thinking with data" is a new "University Breadth Subject" developed for first year students under The University of Melbourne's "Melbourne Model". It aims to teach important elements of statistical science, with minimal mathematics, and was taught in first semester 2008. We present our approaches to assessment of the subject. This has required the use of approaches that are quite distinct from mainstream statistical subjects, since students are not really being taught to do statistical work. They are required to make astute judgments of material with quantitative information, including such texts as a short article about some research in the newspaper. We have used a variety of forms of assessment, including weekly quizzes, (very) short assignments, and a larger project. The style of assessment is more consistent with that used in humanities subjects, and therefore has some important challenges for staff involved in marking, for ...

The Australian & New Zealand journal of obstetrics & gynaecology, Jan 30, 2015

Controversy exists as to whether children conceived using donor sperm should be told about their ... more Controversy exists as to whether children conceived using donor sperm should be told about their origins and the possible deleterious effects of secrecy. The Follow-Up of Children Conceived through Donor Insemination research compares 'family functioning' and 'child well-being' in 62 families where donor-conceived children aged between 5 and 13 years had been 'told' (N = 29) and 'not told' (N = 33) of their genetic heritage. Couples were treated through the Prince…

Springer Proceedings in Mathematics & Statistics, 2014

We describe the development of a statistical literacy subject suitable for undergraduate students... more We describe the development of a statistical literacy subject suitable for undergraduate students from any discipline. Dispositions and fundamental ideas in thinking statistically as a cognizant consumer of media and research reports are identified from the literature. Using this framework, we describe how learning is embedded in a rich context of a diverse range of real-world problems. We illustrate the importance of visual representations in teaching fundamental ideas, including those about variability and statistical modelling, without assuming a strong mathematical background. The development of statistical dispositions is supported by modelling a statistician’s enquiring approach to a question informed by data, structured practice at this approach, and checklists and tips to prompt scepticism.

Australian Journal of Public Health, 2010

This article describes three recently established community-based crisis services for people with... more This article describes three recently established community-based crisis services for people with acute psychiatric illness. Data were obtained from local information systems developed in the early phase of service operation. Patterns of service were found to vary among the teams in terms of the frequency of contact with the client, the period of contact with the client and the overall numbers of contacts. Such diversification of services reflects, at least in part, the differences in the service networks within which the new services were set. Such diversification of services is inevitable and creative, and the evaluation of these services must consider not only the short-term impact of crisis services, but also the impact of the network of care services on longer term outcomes for the client. (Aust J Public Health 1991; 15: 122-9) rograms that offer an alternative to hospitalisation for people with serious mental illness P have become increasingly accepted as an integral part of psychiatric service systems.' Both naturalistic' and randomised controlled studiesgp4 have examined a range of community-based programs over the past 20 years. In review, Stein and Test concluded that it is possible to treat a sizable proportion of seriously mentally ill people in the community when they mi ht otherwise have been admitted to in-patient care! In a more recent review, Szmukler concluded that treatments designed to avoid or shorten traditional hospital treatment for people with psychiatric illness were, on average, as least as effective as the traditional treatment.5 Among the better controlled studies are those by Stein and Test' in Wisconsin, Fenton, Tessier and Struening' in Montreal, and Hoult et aL4 in Sydney. These studies compared standard hospital-based care, which usually included outpatient follow-up, with community-based treatment and follow-up. Stein and Test found that the social and clinical outcomes for people receiving community-based care were better than for people receiving hospital care.' People allocated initially to community care programs spent less time in hospital during the longterm training program for community living. Discontinuation of the training for community living returned the levels of clinical outcome and hospital use to that of the hospital-treated group. Hoult et aL4 compared a similar community treatment program with hospital and standard after-care over a 12-month period, and essentially replicated the positive findings of Stein and Test. Additionally, they found that both clients and their families preferred community-based programs to hospitalisation, and

Wiley StatsRef: Statistics Reference Online, 2014

Encyclopedia of Statistics in Behavioral Science, 2005

Psychometrics developed as a means for measuring psychological abilities and attributes, usually ... more Psychometrics developed as a means for measuring psychological abilities and attributes, usually via a standardized psychological test. Its emergence as a specialized area of psychology combined entrenched social policy assumptions, existing educational practices, contemporary evolutionary thinking, and novel statistical techniques. Psychometrics came to offer a pragmatic, scientific approach that both fulfilled and encouraged the need to rank, classify, and select people. Keywords: true score; error; correlation; norm; reliability; alidity

Journal of Clinical Psychology, 1984

Undertook a factorial analysis of the BDI on a sample of 214 male cardiac outpatients. The factor... more Undertook a factorial analysis of the BDI on a sample of 214 male cardiac outpatients. The factor structure yielded three psychologically distinct dimensions interpreted as negative self-attitudes, physiological symptoms and sadness. The sample was divided into depressed and nondepressed subgroups in order to investigate whether the BDI factor structure is dependent on the range of BDI scores selected. While the first two factors from the nondepressed group's scores mimicked those for the full sample, in general the subgroups' factor structures provided no clear interpretation.

IEEE Photonics Technology Letters, 2006

We present experimental investigations of polarization-mode dispersion (PMD)-induced system penal... more We present experimental investigations of polarization-mode dispersion (PMD)-induced system penalties arising from an all-order PMD source, for amplified spontaneous emission and thermally limited systems. Further, we compare the experimental first-order PMD-induced penalties with predictions from both the string length model and the modified quadratic model. We show that the both models are in good agreement with the experimental data. The major difference between the two models is in the measurement requirements, which are less stringent for the string length method.

Diabetic Medicine, 2010

Aims To document dietary sodium and potassium intake and adherence to the Australian National Hea... more Aims To document dietary sodium and potassium intake and adherence to the Australian National Heart Foundation (NHF) guidelines in patients with Type 2 diabetes mellitus attending an Australian tertiary referral and university teaching hospital. Methods In a longitudinal study, 24h urinary sodium (uNa), potassium (uK), creatinine (uCr), urea (uUrea) and glucose (uGlu) excretions, urine volume (uVol) and body mass index were recorded in 122 regular attenders over an 8 year period (2001-2008; mean of 1.9 samples ⁄ patient ⁄ year). In a cross-sectional study, the same measurements were recorded in patients providing urine samples in the month of June from 2001 to 2009 (782 patients, averaging 87 ⁄ year). Results In the longitudinal study, uNa (mmol ⁄ 24 h) was 170 AE 53 (mean AE SD) in males and 142 AE 51 in females, whereas uK (mmol ⁄ 24 h) was 75 AE 22 in males and 62 AE 18 in females. Once adjusted for insensible losses, only 3% of males and 14% of females met the NHF dietary sodium intake guidelines, and 14% of males and 3% of female patients met the NHF dietary potassium guidelines. Body mass index, uUrea, uVol and uGlu were independent predictors of uNa (adjusted r 2 = 0.57, P < 0.0001). The mean intra-individual coefficient of variation of the corrected uNa was 21 AE 1%. The cross-sectional study confirmed these findings, and no temporal trends were observed. There was no correlation with glycated haemoglobin to suggest natriuresis with hyperglycaemia. Conclusions Most patients with Type 2 diabetes mellitus do not meet NHF sodium or potassium intake guidelines. A diet high in sodium and low in potassium may contribute to the development of hypertension and to resistance to blood-pressure-lowering therapies.

Diabetes Care, 2012

OBJECTIVE—2 Childhood-onset type 1 diabetes is associated with neurocognitive deficits, but there... more OBJECTIVE—2 Childhood-onset type 1 diabetes is associated with neurocognitive deficits, but there is limited evidence to date regarding associated neuroanatomical brain changes and their relationship to illness variables such as age at disease onset. This report examines age-related changes in volume and T2 relaxation time (a fundamental parameter of magnetic resonance imaging that reflects tissue health) across the whole brain. RESEARCH DESIGN AND METHODS— Type 1 diabetes, N = 79 (mean age 20.32 ± 4.24 years), and healthy control participants, N = 50 (mean age 20.53 ± 3.60 years). There were no substantial group differences on socioeconomic status, sex ratio, or intelligence quotient. RESULTS— Regression analyses revealed a negative correlation between age and brain changes, with decreasing gray matter volume and T2 relaxation time with age in multiple brain regions in the type 1 diabetes group. In comparison, the age-related decline in the control group was small. Examination of t...

Diabetes Care, 2008

OBJECTIVE—Cystatin C–and creatinine-based methods were compared with 99m-technetium-diethylene-tr... more OBJECTIVE—Cystatin C–and creatinine-based methods were compared with 99m-technetium-diethylene-triamine-penta-acetic acid (99mTc-DTPA) plasma clearance (isotopic glomerular filtration rate [iGFR]) for detecting declining renal function. RESEARCH DESIGN AND METHODS—Glomerular filtration rate (GFR) was monitored over a mean of 10.1 years in 85 subjects with type 1 diabetes (with an average of 5.6 measurements per individual). Baseline mean ± SD iGFR of the cohort was 106.1 ± 2.6 ml/min per 1.73 m2. The rates of decline in GFR (ΔGFR) were derived using linear regression. RESULTS—In 19 of 85 subjects with declining renal function (i.e., ΔiGFR >3.3 ml/min per 1.73 m2 per year), ΔGFR (ml/min per 1.73 m2 per year) was 6.5 by iGFR, 4.2 by 104/creatinine, 3.6 by Cockcroft-Gault formula, 3.4 by the Modification of Diet in Renal Disease (MDRD)-6 equation, and 3.5 by the MDRD-4 variable equation (P < 0.01 vs. iGFR). In comparison, ΔGFR was 6.1 using the formula Cys-GFR = (86.7/cystatin C ...