What are the differences between research, clinical audit and service evaluation?

Research Clinical Audit Service Evaluation Designed to derive generalisable new knowledge Designed and conducted to produce information to inform delivery of best care Designed and conducted solely to define or judge current care Designed to test a hypothesis Designed to answer ‘does this service reach a predetermined standard’? Designed to answer ‘what standard does this service achieve’? Addresses clearly defined questions, aims and objectives Measures against a standard Measures without reference to a standard Study design may involve allocating patients to intervention groups No allocation to intervention Normally requires Research Ethics Committee review Does not typically require Research Ethics Committee review Does not require Research Ethics Committee review

How does research differ from clinical audit?

Research Clinical Audit Designed to derive generalisable new knowledge Designed and conducted to produce information to inform delivery of best care Designed to test a hypothesis Designed to answer ‘does this service reach a predetermined standard’? Addresses clearly defined questions, aims and objectives Measures against a standard Study design may involve allocating patients to intervention groups No allocation to intervention Normally requires Research Ethics Committee review Does not typically require Research Ethics Committee review

How does service evaluation differ from clinical audit?

Service Evaluation Clinical Audit Designed and conducted solely to define or judge current care Designed and conducted to produce information to inform delivery of best care Designed to answer ‘what standard does this service achieve’? Designed to answer ‘does this service reach a predetermined standard’? Measures without reference to a standard Measures against a standard No allocation to intervention Does not require Research Ethics Committee review Does not typically require Research Ethics Committee review

How does service evaluation differ from research?

Service Evaluation Research Designed and conducted solely to define or judge current care Designed to derive generalisable new knowledge Designed to answer ‘what standard does this service achieve’? Designed to test a hypothesis Measures without reference to a standard Addresses clearly defined questions, aims and objectives No allocation to intervention Study design may involve allocating patients to intervention groups Does not require Research Ethics Committee review Normally requires Research Ethics Committee review