Comparative effectiveness research weighs the benefits and risks/costs of different treatment approaches in health care to drive practice and policy decisions. CER is more than just a “buzzword.” While in some ways it is a repackaging of “old wine in new bottles,” CER is an updating and reframing of the principles and practice of studying patient care that nurse investigators must now master. This course, which assumes a grounding in basic study design, statistics, and real-world patient management, will require some preparatory work and readings in the months leading up to the week in Basel. The policy context and political realities of CER, as well as key methods approaches will be reviewed through the week; these base principles will be fleshed out in guided discussions of exemplary research. Participants will explore and work up their own research ideas in small group and class discussions and finish the week’s sessions and course learning activities with ideas in hand for incorporating CER ideas into their programs of research