Home » Jargon buster » Jargon Buster
-A A +A

Contrast:High|Normal

A | B | C | D | E | F | G | H | I | J | K | L | M | N | O | P | Q | R | S | T | U | V | W
Jargon Description
E-Panel

e-Panels are a way for councils or other organisations to carry out regular online consultations with a known group of citizens.
Economic Analysis

Comparison of the relationship between costs and outcomes of alternative healthcare interventions.
Effect size

A generic term for the estimate of treatment effect for a study.
Efficacy

The extent to which an intervention produces a beneficial result under ideal conditions. Clinical trials that assess efficacy are sometimes called explanatory trials.
Eligibility Criteria

The key standards that people who want to participate in a clinical study must meet or the characteristics that they must have. These include inclusion criteria and exclusion criteria. For example, a study might only accept participants who are above or below certain ages.
Emancipatory Research

With Emancipatory Research, people who use services, rather than professional researchers, have control of the whole research process. They plan and undertake the research, and interpret the findings. The main aim is always to empower people and improve people’s lives.
Emergency Care

An immediate response to time critical health care need
Empowerment

This is the process by which people who use services equip themselves with the knowledge, skills and resources they need to be able to take control over decisions and resources. It often involves people building confidence in their own strengths and abilities. It does not always mean people take control over all decisions or all resources.
End of Life Care

An important part of palliative care for people who are nearing the end of their life. End of life care is for people who are considered to be in the last year of life, but this timeframe can be difficult to predict.
Endpoint Adjudication Committees

In clinical studies where endpoints are complex to assess and/or include subjective components or the study cannot be blinded, an Endpoint Adjudication Committee, consisting of clinical experts in a specific clinical area, might be set up to harmonise and standardise endpoint assessment and to determine whether the endpoints meet protocol-specified criteria. In order to allow for an unbiased endpoint assessment, the members of such a committee should be blinded to treatment assignment. Endpoint Adjudication Committees are, for example, widely used in the assessment of radiological endpoints.
Engagement

Where information and knowledge about research is provided and disseminated, for example science festivals, open days, media coverage
Enrolment

Formal enrolment must occur before randomised assignment.
Epidemiology

The study of population and community health, not just individuals.
Equality Act

Passed in 1995, this law makes it illegal to offer a public service which is inaccessible to someone because of their physical or learning disabilities.
Equipoise

A state of uncertainty where a person believes it is equally likely that either of two treatment options is better.
Erythroleukoplakia

An abnormal patch of red and white tissue that may become cancer.
Erythroplakia

Red lesion that cannot be defined clinically or pathologically as any other condition.
Ethics

Ethics are a set of principles that guide researchers who are carrying out research with people. Ethical principles are designed to protect the safety, dignity, rights and well-being of the people taking part. They include the requirement to ask each individual to give their informed consent to take part in a research project.
Ethics Committees

The job of an ethics committee is to make sure that research carried out respects the dignity, rights, safety and well-being of the people who take part. Increasingly Ethics Committee approval is needed for health and social care research. Ethics committee members include researchers and health care professionals as well as members of the public.
Evaluation

This involves assessing whether an intervention (for example a treatment, service, project, or programme) is achieving its aims. A project can be evaluated as it goes along or right at the end. It can measure how well the project is being carried out as well as its impact. The results of evaluations can help with decision-making and planning.
Evaluation

Evaluation is a systematic determination of a subject's merit, worth and significance, using criteria governed by a set of standards.  The primary purpose of evaluation, in addition to gaining insight into prior or existing initiatives, is to enable reflection and assist in the identification of future change.
Evidence Base

An evidence base is a collection of all the research data currently available about a health or social care topic, such as how well a treatment or a service works. This evidence is used by health and social care professionals to make decisions about the services that they provide and what care or treatment to offer people who use services.
Experimental

This type of research allows researchers to explore research cause and effect. For example, experimental research would be used to see whether a new drug is effective in reducing blood pressure. The research design (in this example a randomised controlled trial) will tell the researcher whether any reduction in blood pressure is definitely due to the drug.
Experts by Experience

The term ‘Experts by Experience’ refers to service users and carers, who are experts through their experience of illness or disability and services.