How Research Conclusions Go Wrong A Primer for Home Health Clinicians

Home health clinicians work in a climate of increasing concern about evidence-based care arising from scientific research and program evaluation. Inconsistent research findings pose challenges for those creating and implementing research-based best practice guidelines. This challenge is intensified by the claim from world-renowned scholar John P. A. Ioannidis that “most published research findings are false.” We believe that many conclusions are false and many are true. This article provides a framework for understanding why many research conclusions are indeed false. We examine problems such as ransacking, bias, senseless comparisons, threats to conclusion validity, and statistical influences that lead to wrong conclusions. Understanding sources of influence that foster wrong conclusions enables the critical consumer of home health research to make sound judgments that translate into true evidence-based care.