|
In Memoriam -
Reprinted from The Epidemiology Monitor July/August 2011 |
Patricia Buffler Gives Opening Address At North American Congress of
Epidemiology
“There can be quantum leaps in the wrong direction,”
warned The University of California Berkeley’s Patricia
Buffler in giving her
opening address at the recent 3rdNorth American Congress of
Epidemiology in Montreal. Highlighting the importance of skepticism
about scientific claims, she entitled her talk “Science, Skepticism,
and Society: The Role of Epidemiology”.
The
overall theme of Buffler’s address was on the important role which
epidemiologists should play in helping the public to understand the
science behind personal and community health decision-making. In her
view, we live in an era when science and technology are a large part
of the fabric of modern society. In such a world, there is a need,
according to Buffler, for the general public to have a basic
understanding of science and statistics because there can be serious
public health consequences for failure to inform AND engage the
public. She asserted it is the role of epidemiologists to fill gaps in
public understanding.
Main
Concern
But
Buffler’s main concern appeared to be not so much about increasing
public understanding of valid public health findings, as important as
these may be, but about clearing up public misunderstandings about
reported, but questionable associations.
She stated that while there have been major changes in
epidemiology over the past 15 years with new models having been
developed, proper reporting and interpretation of data have not
changed. Reiterating that there can be quantum leaps in the wrong
direction, she called epidemiology the “science of causation” and
quoted Popper to remind listeners that theory which is not refutable
is not science. She urged epidemiologists to adopt a “questioning
attitude” in regard to many claims that are taken for granted.
More
Evidence
Buttressing her case, Buffler cited John
Ioannidis’s 2005 paper “Why most Published Research Findings are
False,” to remind the audience that most findings will be refuted. She
urged epidemiologists to state their question clearly, be careful of
their models and methods, and to state their assumptions. “Focus on
the question and not on the models,” she urged. The work of
epidemiology is related to unanswered questions, but also to
unquestioned answers!
Autism and Vaccine Controversy
Buffler used a considerable portion of her time to
illustrate the importance of skepticism by recounting the negative
health consequences that have attended the autism and vaccines
controversy. She described how the putative association between
vaccine and autism has now been shown by an investigative reporter in
the UK to be bogus research, and said the public health impact has
been enormous, citing deaths from measles in the UK and from pertussis
in California. Buffler minced no words in stating “it is the
responsibility of epidemiologists when data need to be questioned.”
Quotes
in Conclusion
She
approached the end of her talk by quoting Michael
Gibbons in Nature in
1999. “…reliable knowledge can only become socially robust if society
sees the process of knowledge production as transparent and
participative…The old image of science working anonymously will no
longer suffice…Rather a reciprocity is required in which not only does
the public understand how science works, but , equally science
understands how its publics work.”
And finally, she ended her presentation by quoting John
Maxwell, an American author and speaker on leadership, “People
never care how much you know---until they know how much you care.”
|