Development of a Causal Inference Toolkit for Patient-Centered Outcomes Research [Methods Study], 2013-2018

Comparative effectiveness research compares two or more treatments to see which one works better for which patients. One type of research study is a randomized controlled trial, or an RCT. In an RCT, the research team assigns patients to a treatment by chance.
Other types of studies use information from health records and registries. Registries store data about patients with a specific health problem. They often include information on how each patient responds to a treatment. Because researchers don't assign treatments by chance in such studies, differences in how patients respond to a treatment may be from the treatment or something else, such as a patient's age or the severity of their illness. In studies using registries and health records, researchers apply statistical approaches, called causal inference methods, to estimate how treatments work. At the same time, they look at other things that could affect results, like a patient's age.
Researchers can choose among many different causal inference methods. But they may have a hard time knowing which methods to use or how to use complex methods correctly. In this study, the research team made an interactive online guide for researchers. The guide, called CERBOT, helps researchers design studies and select these methods.