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| Douglas G. Altman | |
|---|---|
| Name | Douglas G. Altman |
| Birth date | 1948 |
| Death date | 2018 |
| Fields | Medical statistics, research methodology |
| Workplaces | University of Oxford, University of London, University of St Andrews |
| Alma mater | University College London, University of London |
Douglas G. Altman
Douglas G. Altman was a British statistician and medical researcher known for promoting rigorous clinical trial methodology, transparent scientific method reporting, and reproducible biomedical research. He held academic appointments at major institutions and influenced policy at organizations including the World Health Organization, the National Institutes of Health, and the Cochrane Collaboration. His work intersected with figures and institutions such as Iain Chalmers, Richard Peto, Peter Gøtzsche, Jeremy Grimshaw, Murray Enkin, and Paul Glasziou.
Altman was born in 1948 and educated at University College London and the University of London, where he trained in statistics and medical research methods alongside contemporaries connected to Royal Statistical Society, Wellcome Trust, and Medical Research Council. He completed degrees that positioned him to collaborate with researchers at St George's, University of London, Imperial College London, and King's College London on applied problems in clinical epidemiology and public health.
Altman held academic posts at University of London institutions before taking a chair at the University of Oxford and later being associated with University of St Andrews. He directed units and collaborated with researchers at the York Trials Unit, MRC Clinical Trials Unit, and the University of Bristol on methodological projects. His career included advisory roles with the Cochrane Collaboration, the World Health Organization, the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence, and editorial positions with journals such as The Lancet, BMJ, and Statistics in Medicine.
Altman advanced techniques for analysis and reporting in randomized controlled trials, diagnostic test evaluation, and systematic reviews, promoting standards adopted by Consolidated Standards of Reporting Trials, Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses, and guideline developers including Equator Network. He developed methodological guidance on confidence intervals, Bland–Altman plots for agreement studies, and issues in multiple comparisons and bias. His efforts influenced practitioners at institutions like Johns Hopkins University, Harvard Medical School, Stanford University School of Medicine, and Mayo Clinic and informed policy at the National Institutes of Health and European Medicines Agency.
Altman campaigned against poor statistical practice exemplified in debates involving journals such as Nature, Science, and the New England Journal of Medicine. He partnered with methodologists including David Moher, Kenneth Schulz, Doug Altman's contemporaries in guideline work such as Iain Chalmers and Paul Glasziou, and statisticians at Royal Statistical Society and International Statistical Institute to promote reproducibility, data sharing, and transparent peer review.
Altman co-authored and edited influential texts and reports used in clinical research training, including works produced with collaborators from Oxford University Press, BMJ Publishing Group, and academic presses used by Cambridge University Press and Wiley-Blackwell. His major authored and co-authored works addressed statistical inference, reporting standards exemplified by CONSORT, diagnostic test evaluation using receiver operating characteristic methods, and practical guidance for clinicians and researchers. He wrote methodological papers appearing in journals such as BMJ, The Lancet, Statistics in Medicine, and Journal of Clinical Epidemiology that have been widely cited by investigators at Columbia University, Yale University, University of Toronto, and University of Melbourne.
Altman received recognition from professional bodies including fellowships and awards from the Royal Statistical Society, Academy of Medical Sciences, and honors from organizations such as the British Medical Association and international societies for clinical epidemiology. He was invited to deliver named lectures at venues including Royal Society, Royal College of Physicians, Institute of Medicine, and university lecture series at Oxford, Cambridge University, and Harvard University.
In later years Altman continued to advocate for methodological reform, contributing to initiatives at the Equator Network, the Cochrane Collaboration, and collaborations with editors at BMJ and The Lancet to improve reporting quality. His influence persists through adoption of reporting standards, training programs at institutions such as University of Oxford and University College London, and ongoing citation of his methodological guidance in systematic reviews, clinical guidelines by bodies like NICE, and regulatory frameworks at the European Medicines Agency and Food and Drug Administration. His legacy is reflected in the work of researchers and statisticians across universities and research organizations worldwide.
Category:British statisticians Category:Medical statisticians Category:1948 births Category:2018 deaths