New: 98,000+ skills indexed from GitHub repos with 100+ stars · every skill safety-checkedBrowse top skillsTop skills
Esc to closeBrowse all skills
Submit a skillBrowse skills
Submit a skillBrowse skills

Agent skill

Study Design Scale Selector

by aipoch in aipoch/medical-research-skills

Determines the appropriate Risk of Bias assessment scale for a medical study based on its design (RCT, Cohort, etc.), using PubMed metadata lookup or text analysis.

MITAuto-check passedResearch & Science

Install Study Design Scale Selector

skills CLI
$ npx skills add aipoch/medical-research-skills --skill study-design-scale-selector -a claude-code

Project install by default; add -g for ~/.claude/skills/.

GitHub CLI
$ gh skill install aipoch/medical-research-skills study-design-scale-selector --agent claude-code

Project scope by default; add --scope user for a personal install. Needs GitHub CLI 2.90.0 or later (public preview).

Manual copy
$ git clone --depth 1 https://github.com/aipoch/medical-research-skills.git skills-src && mkdir -p .claude/skills && cp -r skills-src/'scientific-skills/Data Analysis/study-design-scale-selector' .claude/skills/study-design-scale-selector && rm -rf skills-src

Use ~/.claude/skills/ instead of .claude/skills for a personal install. The folder must contain SKILL.md.

Claude Code skills documentation · loads skills from .claude/skills/

Facts

Skill name
study-design-scale-selector
GitHub stars
2k
Token cost
~1.6k tokens
SKILL.md length
729 words
Files
5 (incl. scripts, references)
Skills in repo
567
Repo updated
First seen
Licence
MIT

At a glance

Determines the appropriate Risk of Bias assessment scale for a medical study based on its design (RCT, Cohort, etc.), using PubMed metadata lookup or text analysis.

  • Works in 4 steps: Check Metadata (If PMID provided) → Analyze Text (Fallback) → Select Scale → …
  • The user wants to know which quality assessment tool to use for a specific paper (given PMID
  • SKILL.md covers When to Use, Key Features, Dependencies and Example Usage, plus 9 more sections
  • Runs Python scripts from its folder; calls python

What it does

Study Design Scale Selector is an agent skill from aipoch/medical-research-skills. Determines the appropriate Risk of Bias assessment scale for a medical study based on its design (RCT, Cohort, etc.), using PubMed metadata lookup or text analysis. Use when the user wants to know which quality assessment tool to use for a specific paper (given PMID or abstract).

Its SKILL.md is about 1.6k tokens, which your agent loads only when the skill is triggered. The skill folder holds 6 other files, including scripts and reference files (for example `references/scale_rules.md`, `scripts/extract_pdf.py` and `scripts/selector.py`).

It sits in Research & Science, covering Experimental design and Academic paper search. It works with PubMed. The repository describes itself as: Hundreds of agent skills for medical research, including protocol design, data analysis, evidence insights, and academic writing. The licence is MIT.

When your agent uses it

  • The user wants to know which quality assessment tool to use for a specific paper (given PMID
  • Tasks that involve Experimental design
  • Tasks that involve Academic paper search

Example prompts

  • “Use the study-design-scale-selector skill to determine the appropriate Risk of Bias assessment scale for a medical study based on its design (RCT…”
  • “/study-design-scale-selector”

Requirements

  • Python 3

Workflow steps

4 steps, taken from the step headings in SKILL.md.

  1. Check Metadata (If PMID provided)
  2. Analyze Text (Fallback)
  3. Select Scale
  4. Output

What it can do on your machine

Read from SKILL.md and the folder at commit 686e09d. It shows what the files ask for, not the result of running them.

  • Tool permissions

    Pre-approves nothing: there is no allowed-tools line, so your agent's usual permission prompts apply.

    From allowed-tools in the SKILL.md frontmatter.

  • Runs code

    Ships 2 files in scripts/ (Python), which the agent can run.

    Shell commands in SKILL.md call:

    • python

    From the folder's file list and the shell code blocks in SKILL.md.

  • Network

    No URLs in SKILL.md.

    From URLs in SKILL.md, links to its own repository left out.

  • Credentials

    Names no API keys, tokens, secrets or passwords.

    From names ending in _API_KEY, _TOKEN, _SECRET, _KEY or _PASSWORD in SKILL.md.

Context cost

Study Design Scale Selector loads about 1.6k tokens when it runs, and up to ~1.8k if it reads all its reference files. Until then it costs about 77 tokens; SKILL.md has 729 words of instructions outside code blocks.

Always · name and description, kept in context so the agent knows when to use it
~77
When it runs · the whole SKILL.md, loaded when a task matches
~1.6k
With references · SKILL.md plus every file in references/, read only if the agent opens them
~1.8k

Estimates: characters ÷ 4, the usual rule of thumb; real counts depend on the model's tokenizer. Scripts and assets cost tokens only if the agent reads them.

Safety

Auto-check passed

The automated check found no risky patterns in SKILL.md.

Automated static check — not a guarantee. Review scripts before installing. It scans the text of SKILL.md for risky patterns (piping downloads into a shell, reading credential files, hidden Unicode, destructive commands); the scripts in this folder are not scanned.

SKILL.md

The full file from aipoch/medical-research-skills at commit 686e09d, republished under its MIT licence (© aipoch). 729 words, ~1,586 tokens.

Download SKILL.mdSave it as .claude/skills/study-design-scale-selector/SKILL.md (or your agent's skills folder). This skill also uses 4 other files; get the full folder from GitHub.
name
study-design-scale-selector
description
Determines the appropriate Risk of Bias assessment scale for a medical study based on its design (RCT, Cohort, etc.), using PubMed metadata lookup or text analysis. Use when the user wants to know which quality assessment tool to use for a specific paper (given PMID or abstract).
license
MIT
author
AIPOCH

Source: https://github.com/aipoch/medical-research-skills

Study Design Scale Selector

This skill helps identify the study design of a medical paper and selects the appropriate risk of bias assessment scale.

When to Use

  • Use this skill when the request matches its documented task boundary.
  • Use it when the user can provide the required inputs and expects a structured deliverable.
  • Prefer this skill for repeatable, checklist-driven execution rather than open-ended brainstorming.

Key Features

  • Scope-focused workflow aligned to: Determines the appropriate Risk of Bias assessment scale for a medical study based on its design (RCT, Cohort, etc.), using PubMed metadata lookup or text analysis. Use when the user wants to know which quality assessment tool to use for a specific paper (given PMID or abstract).
  • Packaged executable path(s): scripts/extract_pdf.py plus 1 additional script(s).
  • Reference material available in references/ for task-specific guidance.
  • Structured execution path designed to keep outputs consistent and reviewable.

Dependencies

  • Python: 3.10+. Repository baseline for current packaged skills.
  • Third-party packages: not explicitly version-pinned in this skill package. Add pinned versions if this skill needs stricter environment control.

Example Usage

bash
cd "20260316/scientific-skills/Data Analytics/study-design-scale-selector"
python -m py_compile scripts/extract_pdf.py
python scripts/extract_pdf.py --help

Example run plan:

  1. Confirm the user input, output path, and any required config values.
  2. Edit the in-file CONFIG block or documented parameters if the script uses fixed settings.
  3. Run python scripts/extract_pdf.py with the validated inputs.
  4. Review the generated output and return the final artifact with any assumptions called out.

Implementation Details

See ## Workflow above for related details.

  • Execution model: validate the request, choose the packaged workflow, and produce a bounded deliverable.
  • Input controls: confirm the source files, scope limits, output format, and acceptance criteria before running any script.
  • Primary implementation surface: scripts/extract_pdf.py with additional helper scripts under scripts/.
  • Reference guidance: references/ contains supporting rules, prompts, or checklists.
  • Parameters to clarify first: input path, output path, scope filters, thresholds, and any domain-specific constraints.
  • Output discipline: keep results reproducible, identify assumptions explicitly, and avoid undocumented side effects.

Workflow

1. Check Metadata (If PMID provided)

If the user provides a PMID, use the selector.py script to fetch study metadata from PubMed.

bash
python scripts/selector.py "<PMID>"

If the script returns a non-empty JSON with study_design:

  • Use the returned study_design.
  • Skip to Step 3.

If the script returns empty JSON {} or fails:

  • Proceed to Step 2.
2. Analyze Text (Fallback)

If metadata is unavailable or no PMID is provided, analyze the Title and Abstract provided by the user.

Action: Identify the study design from the text. Look for keywords like:

  • "Randomized controlled trial", "RCT"
  • "Cohort study", "Longitudinal study"
  • "Case-control study"
  • "Cross-sectional study"
3. Select Scale

Using the identified study_design, consult scale_rules.md to select the correct assessment scale.

4. Output

Present the result in the following JSON format:

json
{
  "study_design": "<Identified Design>",
  "scale": "<Selected Scale>"
}
Show full SKILL.md (292 more words)Show less

Helper Scripts

PDF Text Extraction

When the user provides a PDF file path, use extract_pdf.py to extract the text content before assessment:

When Not to Use

  • Do not use this skill when the required source data, identifiers, files, or credentials are missing.
  • Do not use this skill when the user asks for fabricated results, unsupported claims, or out-of-scope conclusions.
  • Do not use this skill when a simpler direct answer is more appropriate than the documented workflow.

Required Inputs

  • A clearly specified task goal aligned with the documented scope.
  • All required files, identifiers, parameters, or environment variables before execution.
  • Any domain constraints, formatting requirements, and expected output destination if applicable.

Output Contract

  • Return a structured deliverable that is directly usable without reformatting.
  • If a file is produced, prefer a deterministic output name such as study_design_scale_selector_result.md unless the skill documentation defines a better convention.
  • Include a short validation summary describing what was checked, what assumptions were made, and any remaining limitations.

Validation and Safety Rules

  • Validate required inputs before execution and stop early when mandatory fields or files are missing.
  • Do not fabricate measurements, references, findings, or conclusions that are not supported by the provided source material.
  • Emit a clear warning when credentials, privacy constraints, safety boundaries, or unsupported requests affect the result.
  • Keep the output safe, reproducible, and within the documented scope at all times.

Failure Handling

  • If validation fails, explain the exact missing field, file, or parameter and show the minimum fix required.
  • If an external dependency or script fails, surface the command path, likely cause, and the next recovery step.
  • If partial output is returned, label it clearly and identify which checks could not be completed.

Quick Validation

Run this minimal verification path before full execution when possible:

bash
python scripts/extract_pdf.py --help

Expected output format:

text
Result file: study_design_scale_selector_result.md
Validation summary: PASS/FAIL with brief notes
Assumptions: explicit list if any

© aipoch, MIT. Rendered from Markdown: HTML in the file is shown as text, images as links, and headings moved down two levels. Raw file

Files

SKILL.md and 4 other files (scripts, references) in scientific-skills/Data Analysis/study-design-scale-selector of aipoch/medical-research-skills.

  • SKILL.md
  • references/scale_rules.md
  • scripts/extract_pdf.py
  • scripts/selector.py
  • study-design-scale-selector_audit_result_v2.json

Open the folder on GitHubat commit 686e09d

Compare with similar skills

Study Design Scale Selector next to the 5 skills that share the most tags, products or categories with it. Stars are the repository's; “used in” counts other GitHub owners with a copy.

Study Design Scale Selector compared with similar skills
SkillStarsUsed inTokensAuto-checkLicenceRepo updated
Study Design Scale Selector this skillaipoch/medical-research-skills2k—~1.6kAutomated safety check: PassMIT
Literature Reviewneflibata-feng/MyArxiv-Agent12621 repos~5.9kAutomated safety check: NotesMIT
Citation ManagementK-Dense-AI/claude-scientific-writer2.4k3 repos~3.9kAutomated safety check: NotesMIT
Citation Managementneflibata-feng/MyArxiv-Agent12620 repos~8.1kAutomated safety check: NotesMIT
Paper Searchopenags/paper-search-mcp2.8k—~1.2kAutomated safety check: NotesMIT
Rival Search MCPdamionrashford/RivalSearchMCP1321 repos~796Automated safety check: PassMIT

Similar skills

  • Literature Review

    neflibata-feng/MyArxiv-Agent

    Conduct comprehensive, systematic literature reviews using multiple academic databases (PubMed, arXiv, bioRxiv, Semantic Scholar, etc.).

    126 GitHub starsUsed in 21 repos~5.9k tokens
    Research & ScienceAuto-check: notes

  • Citation Management

    K-Dense-AI/claude-scientific-writer

    Finds papers in OpenAlex, PubMed and Google Scholar, turns DOIs, PMIDs and arXiv IDs into clean BibTeX, and validates citations for a manuscript or thesis.

    2.4k GitHub starsUsed in 3 repos~3.9k tokens
    Research & ScienceAuto-check: notes

  • Citation Management

    neflibata-feng/MyArxiv-Agent

    Comprehensive citation management for academic research. An agent skill from neflibata-feng/MyArxiv-Agent.

    126 GitHub starsUsed in 20 repos~8.1k tokens
    Research & ScienceAuto-check: notes

  • Paper Search

    openags/paper-search-mcp

    Search, download, and read academic papers from 20+ sources (arXiv, PubMed, Semantic Scholar, CrossRef, etc).

    2.8k GitHub stars~1.2k tokensUpdated 6 days ago
    Research & ScienceAuto-check: notes

  • Rival Search MCP

    damionrashford/RivalSearchMCP

    Deterministic deep research via RivalSearchMCP. An agent skill from damionrashford/RivalSearchMCP.

    132 GitHub starsUsed in 1 repo~796 tokens
    Research & ScienceAuto-check passed

  • Nature Academic Search

    wp-a/nature-academic-search

    A skill your agent uses when users ask to 找文献、做文献检索、查论文、查临床试验、核验引用、去重文献、设计 PubMed/MeSH 检索式、追踪上下游引文、解析 DOI/PMID/PMCID/arXiv/OpenAlex/Semantic Scholar/NCT ID， 或导出 RIS、BibTeX、NBIB、ENW；also use for…

    299 GitHub stars~1.4k tokensUpdated 6 days ago
    Research & ScienceAuto-check passed

More from aipoch/medical-research-skills

All 567 skills in this repo

  • Academic Poster Generator

    aipoch/medical-research-skills

    Complete workflow for generating academic research posters from PDF literature; use when you need to extract paper content from PDFs and produce a LaTeX-based poster…

    2k GitHub stars~2.2k tokensUpdated 21 days ago
    Auto-check passed

  • Diagnostic Study Quality Assessment Quadas

    aipoch/medical-research-skills

    Analyzes clinical diagnostic accuracy studies for bias using the QUADAS-2 tool.

    2k GitHub stars~1.4k tokensUpdated 21 days ago
    Auto-check passed

  • Exploratory Data Analysis

    aipoch/medical-research-skills

    Perform comprehensive exploratory data analysis on scientific data files across 200+ file formats.

    2k GitHub stars~3.7k tokensUpdated 21 days ago
    Auto-check passed

  • Iso Certification

    aipoch/medical-research-skills

    A toolkit for preparing ISO 13485:2016 certification documentation for medical device QMS.

    2k GitHub stars~1.8k tokensUpdated 21 days ago
    Auto-check passed

  • Journal Skills

    aipoch/medical-research-skills

    Recommends target journals for manuscript submission by analyzing the paper topic/abstract and the journal distribution of similar PubMed literature; use when users ask for journal…

    2k GitHub stars~1.7k tokensUpdated 21 days ago
    Auto-check passed

  • Latex Posters

    aipoch/medical-research-skills

    Creates academic-poster writing packages for LaTeX using beamerposter, tikzposter, or baposter.

    2k GitHub stars~1.3k tokensUpdated 21 days ago
    Auto-check passed

Works with

Categories

Questions about Study Design Scale Selector

What does Study Design Scale Selector do?

Determines the appropriate Risk of Bias assessment scale for a medical study based on its design (RCT, Cohort, etc.), using PubMed metadata lookup or text analysis. Study Design Scale Selector is an agent skill from aipoch/medical-research-skills.), using PubMed metadata lookup or text analysis.

When should I use Study Design Scale Selector?

Study Design Scale Selector fits situations like: the user wants to know which quality assessment tool to use for a specific paper (given PMID; tasks that involve Experimental design; tasks that involve Academic paper search.

How do I install Study Design Scale Selector in Claude Code?

Run `npx skills add aipoch/medical-research-skills --skill study-design-scale-selector -a claude-code`. Or copy the skill folder (scientific-skills/Data Analysis/study-design-scale-selector in aipoch/medical-research-skills) into .claude/skills/study-design-scale-selector in your project. Claude Code loads it when a task matches its description.

How do I install Study Design Scale Selector in Codex?

Run `npx skills add aipoch/medical-research-skills --skill study-design-scale-selector -a codex`. Or copy the skill folder (scientific-skills/Data Analysis/study-design-scale-selector in aipoch/medical-research-skills) into .agents/skills/study-design-scale-selector in your project. Codex loads it when a task matches its description.

Can I use Study Design Scale Selector in Cursor, Gemini CLI or GitHub Copilot?

Cursor, Gemini CLI, GitHub Copilot and OpenCode also load SKILL.md folders. With the skills CLI, run `npx skills add aipoch/medical-research-skills --skill study-design-scale-selector -a cursor` (or -a gemini-cli, github-copilot or opencode for the others). To copy it by hand, put the folder in .cursor/skills/study-design-scale-selector, .gemini/skills/study-design-scale-selector, .github/skills/study-design-scale-selector and .opencode/skills/study-design-scale-selector in your project.

What does Study Design Scale Selector need to run?

Going by SKILL.md and its folder, Study Design Scale Selector needs Python for the scripts in its folder and the command-line tools its instructions call (python). Our summary lists: Python 3.

Does Study Design Scale Selector access the network?

SKILL.md contains no URLs. Any network use would come from the scripts or tools the agent runs. This is read from the text; nothing was executed.

Is Study Design Scale Selector safe to install?

Our automated static check of SKILL.md found no risky patterns, such as piping downloads into a shell, reading credential files or hidden Unicode. It is not a guarantee. The check reads SKILL.md only: the scripts in the folder are not scanned, so read them before running anything.

What licence does Study Design Scale Selector use?

Study Design Scale Selector is published under the MIT licence (declared in SKILL.md). It allows redistribution, so the full SKILL.md is shown on this page.

How many tokens does Study Design Scale Selector use?

About 1.6k tokens (SKILL.md is roughly 6.3k characters). Agents keep only the skill's name and description in context until a task matches; then they load SKILL.md in full. Its references folder adds about 192 tokens, read only when the agent opens those files.

What are the alternatives to Study Design Scale Selector?

Skills that share tags, products or a category with Study Design Scale Selector: Literature Review (neflibata-feng/MyArxiv-Agent, 126 stars), Citation Management (K-Dense-AI/claude-scientific-writer, 2.4k stars), Citation Management (neflibata-feng/MyArxiv-Agent, 126 stars) and Paper Search (openags/paper-search-mcp, 2.8k stars). The comparison table on this page puts their stars, adoption, token cost, safety result and licence side by side.

Who maintains Study Design Scale Selector?

aipoch (a GitHub organization) maintains it in aipoch/medical-research-skills, which has 1,974 GitHub stars. The repository holds 567 skills in this directory. The repository was last updated on September 17, 2026.

Source: aipoch/medical-research-skills on GitHub. Facts on this page come from the repository at the commit we read; the author's words are quoted as theirs.