Related Experiment Video
Updated: Jun 12, 2026

Rapid Detection of Fecal Antigen of Helicobacter pylori Infection Based on Double Antibody Sandwich Detection Technology
Published on: May 23, 2025
How certain are you, doctor?
Jonathan Gillis1, Bernadette Tobin
1Pediatric Intensive Care Unit, The Children's Hospital at Westmead, Sydney, New South Wales, Australia. jonathan.gillis@sesiahs.health.nsw.gov.au
Objective:
To argue that pediatric intensive care physicians have difficulties in responding to parental questions about prognostic certainty, and that this constitutes a failure in their professional responsibility to parents.
Conclusions:
These difficulties arise from three sources: 1) the structure and organization of contemporary intensive care, 2) the neglect of prognostication, and 3) the failure to distinguish scientific certainty from practical certainty. It is proposed that an understanding of these issues will enable physicians to respond to the parental question "How certain are you, doctor?" with more authenticity and sincerity.
Related Concept Videos
Sensitivity, Specificity, and Predicted Value
Sensitivity is the...
Uncertainty in Measurement: Reading Instruments
Interpretation of Confidence Intervals
Confidence intervals have confidence coefficients that are crucial for their interpretation. The most common confidence coefficients are 0.90, 0.95, and 0.99, which can be written as percentages–90%, 95%, and 99%, respectively.
Suppose a person calculates a confidence interval with a confidence coefficient of 0.95. In that case, they can...
Uncertainty in Measurement: Accuracy and Precision
Uncertainty in Measurement: Significant Figures
Confidence Coefficient
