Making sense of statistics for family practitioner - 'Lies, damn lies and statistics'

Abstract

There is a delightful story about three family practitioners and three statisticians who shared a train compartment on the way to a conference.The statisticians asked the family practitioners whether they had bought tickets for the journey and began to laugh derisively when each doctor produced a ticket. With unconcealed pride the statistician boasted that they had only bought one ticket between them. On hearing the ticket collector approaching their carriage, the statisticians proceeded to lock themselves in the toilet. When the conductor knocked on the toilet door, to the amazement of the family practitioners, they proffered the single ticket under the door. Satisfied, the ticket collector clipped it and slid it back to them.