statistics

Derived from ;

1.Latin word → status

2.Italian word→ statista
3.German word→ statistik

Definition:
Statistics may be defined as the collection, presentation analysis and interpretation
of the numerical data.
 Branches of statistics
Descriptive statistics:
It includes collection, classification, summarization and
presentation of data. It describes large sets using only few
measures like mean, median, standard deviation, tabular,
graphical, diagrammatic representation of data.

Inferential statistics:
It draws conclusion about population on the basis of
sample drawn from it.
 Statistics

Descriptive statistics Inferential statistics

Includes: Includes:
- Collecting - Making inferences
- Organizing - Hypothesis testing
- Summarizing - Determining relationship
- Presenting data - Making predictions
Scope of statistics
1.Planning
2.Health
3.Business
4.Industry
5.Agricultre
6.demography
 Function of statistics(importance)

1.Simplies complexity
2.Presents facts in definite form.
3.Facialiates comparison.
4.Helps in formulation of policies.
5.Helps in formulating and testing of hypothesis.
Limitation of statistics
1. Does not deal with individual.
2. Does not qualitative phenomena, such as beauty,
intelligence, color etc
3. Statistical laws are not exact.
4. Statistics is only means.
5. Statistics is liable to be misused
biostatistics
It is the application of statistical techniques to scientific research
in health related fields, including medicine, public health, pharmacy,
nursing and biology and development of new tools to study those
areas.
OR
It is the application of statistics to biological and medical data.
 Application of biostatistics in medical sciences:

A. Clinical medicine, surgery and other medical sciences.

1. To find association between two attributes such as cancer and smoking.

2. To find correlation between two variables such as height and weight.
3. To find normal range and averages of variables such as height, weight, pulse rate, B.P etc.
4. To implement the better treatment practice to the patients.
5. To identify the variability between patients .
6. To compare the different surgical procedure and use best one to the patients .
 STATISTICAL TERMS

Variable:
1. Property of an object or an event that can take on different values.
2. Varies from an individual to individual, or from an object to object within the population.

Variable

Qualitative Quantitative

Discrete Continuous
 1. Qualitative (Categorical)
No magnitude, just categorized.
Eg, Attributes
Gender – Male/Female
Disease – Present/Absent
Pain – Non/Mild/Moderate/Severe
Color, Religion
Blood group, Nationality.
2. Quantitative (Numerical)
1. Can be expressed as a number or quantity or magnitude.
2. Have units of measurements.
Eg, Height, weight, age, temperature, b.p, pulse rate, etc.

a. Discrete: It takes only discrete or exact value.

eg, no. of child, WBC count, beds in hospital etc.

b. Continuous: Takes any values over a particular range.

Most biomedical variables are continuous in nature.
eg, height, weight, temperature records etc.
Parameter: A summery value of variable for a population is called parameter.
Eg, Average= µ
Standard deviation = σ

Statistic: A summery value of variable for a sample is called

statistic.
Eg, Average = ×̅ , Standard deviation = S

Data: facts, observation and information that comes from investigation.

Types of measurement(levels of measurement)
The choice of appropriate statistical technique depends upon the type of data in
question. There are four scales of measurement. They are:

Nominal scale:
Is A different from B ?
Nominal scale has property of identify. In this scale of scale, numerals/symbols
are assigned in order to distinguish one object from other. since, the numeral
has no numerical meaning they can’t be added or ordered.
Examples;
1. Assignment of numerals to player.
2. Assignment of ‘0’ to male and ‘1’ to female.
3. Marital status: single, married, widowed or divorce.
Ordinal scale:
Is A bigger than B ?
Ordinal scale have property of identify and magnitude. Here we can measure
in terms of which has less and more quality of being measured, that is they
can be ranked. The symbols/numerals represents a quality of being measured
(identify).There is no information about size of interval.
examples:
1. pain: none, moderate, severe
2. Stage of cancer: first, second, third, fourth.
3. socio-economic status: lower, middle, upper.
Interval scale:
By how units do A and B differ ?
Interval scale have properties of identify, magnitude, and equal interval.
It does not have absolute zero point. The addition and subtraction is used
but the ratio of scores is not meaningful.

Example:
Temperature of body measured in degree Celsius or Fahrenheit.

Note:
1. Difference between 60 and 50 degree Celsius is 10 degrees.
2. There is no such thing as ‘no temperature’
3. 20 degrees is not twice as hot as 10 degrees.
Ratio scale:
By how many times A is bigger than B ?
Ratio scale have all properties of measurement; identify, magnitude,
equal interval and absolute zero. The ratio between two values on this
scale is a meaningful scale.
E.g. BP, height, weight etc.
 Collection of data:
1. Primary data:
The data which are originally collected by an investigator
or an agent for the purpose of statistical inquiry is called primary data.

Methods of primary data collection

I. Direct personal interview.
II. Indirect oral interview.
III. Information through correspondents.
IV. Mailed questionnaire method.
V. Schedules through enumerators
 Secondary data:
The data obtained from some secondary source
(published or unpublished) such as journals, magazines,
newspapers etc is known as secondary Data.

Methods of collection secondary data:

Published source (e.g. books, newspaper, journal, articles etc.)
Unpublished source (e.g. hospital, records, diaries etc.)
 Census:
The complete enumeration of all units of population is called census. Demographic
information such as vital statistics, socio-economic information etc. are collected in
census. In Nepal, it started in 1911(1968 B.S) and it is conducted in every 10 years.

Sampling Method:
Some units selected from the population is known as sample and the process of
selecting some units from population in order to draw conclusion about the
population is known as sampling.

Survey method:
In sample survey only part of total population is enumerated. Surveys are
carried for epidemiological studies in the field to find the health condition
or disease pattern in community.
Vital registration:
The system of recording or registering of vital events such as birth, death,
marriage and divorce in legal institution is known as vital registration.

Adhoc Surveys:
Adhoc survey is usually used to collect information that is not available in regular
basis.It is used to study natural calamities, major epidemics awareness etc.

Hospital records:
It is a systematic documentation of single patient’s medical history and care.