Building the powerful 10-minute office visit, Part I: Introduction to the new section

Objective: This is the first of a planned progressive series of articles en titled "Tutorials in Clinical Research" written to assist those who would b ecome more active in the application of scientific methods to their practic es and to assist those who would seek to develop and publish new discoverie s of their own. On completion of Tutorials, the reader should be able to 1) critically and efficiently read the literature and 2) use his or her perso nal practice as a laboratory for clinical investigation. Study Design: Tuto rial, Methods: The Journal editor agreed to launch the serious "Tutorials i n Clinical Research," which was conceived out of a need for an easily under standable and accessible collection of tutorials for the busy practitioner. The Clinical Research Working Group at Washington University, Department o f Otolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery, will write, edit, and solicit addit ional authors for the completion of this planned 22-article series. The int ended audience includes, among other groups, practitioners without research funds who are interested in the application of scientific methods to their practices. Results: This first article in the series outlines how to begin and three steps for the initial application of scientific methods to pract ice, including critical literature review, prospective analysis of practice , and specific project development. Conclusions: The application of scienti fic methods to practice can be fun, educational, and effective in the enhan cement of quality care. The "value added" result is the development of the powerful 10-minute patient office visit for the busy practitioner.