Complete Case Report Writing Course

— Case Report Writing Blueprint —

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Your Case Report Writing Blueprint

As a writer of case reports, you may want to share clinical expertise with peers, teach students and residents, explore therapeutic options with patients, publish a case report preprint or publish in a medical journal. In these situations, you will benefit from training in writing, presenting, and publishing case reports following the CARE reporting guidelines. You will learn to identify your contributions, the audiences you wish to reach, and the information needed to begin writing. Upon completing this course you will be able to:

  1. Understand the "ins and outs" of publishing articles in scientific journals.
  2. Recognize the importance of health research reporting guidelines in guiding scientific publications.
  3. Integrate your clinical expertise with existing scientific knowledge.
  4. Write accurate and transparent case reports following the CARE guidelines as preprints, posters, and articles for scientific journals.
  5. Enhance communication with colleagues.

Dr. Riley co-led the development of the CARE guidelines for case reports and has taught case report writing for more than 5 years. He has been a medical writer and editor for more than twenty years and is experienced at guiding authors toward writing and publishing compelling case reports about the clinical services they provide.


Your Instructor


David S. Riley, MD
David S. Riley, MD

David Riley, MD — founder of SWIHM and co-leader of CARE guideline development — is board certified in Internal Medicine, a senior editor with The Permanente Journal, and has participated in the development of health research reporting guidelines since 1999. SWIHM was founded to help authors write case reports as preprints, posters, and publications in scientific journals following CARE. The SWIHM training is designed to clarify and simplify the writing of case reports to support better communication among healthcare stakeholders and support evidence-based clinical practice.

Since 2013, the CARE guidelines have become widely accepted as a standard for publishing case reports in scientific journals and have been translated into more than 10 languages. Dr. Riley lives in Portland, Oregon and invites you to use case reports and evidence from the point of care to communicate with the global healthcare community.


"This course was incredibly helpful, and the lessons and resources provided were invaluable. Since taking the class, I have written a case report which has been accepted for publication, and several others which are under consideration. This wouldn't have been possible without Dr. Riley's class and instruction. I highly recommend this class to anyone interested in writing case reports and case series."

- Alisha Bruton, medical student 2019

"This course was enjoyable and helpful. The information was presented in a way that was clear, concise, and organized. Breaking down what is normally overwhelming and complex information of writing a case study with bite sized videos, handouts, and small quizzes made the information more interesting and digestible. Thank you!"

- Brooke Bochinski, doctoral student 2021

"This course included comprehensive and to-the-point videos with a clear message for each. This made it easy to revisit as needed. I don't have a lot of time, so the quick and informative videos made learning the content easy. The included handouts and mini quizzes were also valuable additions."

- Anna Flores, doctoral student 2021

"I would definitely recommend this course to those who are struggling with writing case report publications. It will help you learn value, structure, and professionalism."

- Jasmine Hollywood, doctoral student 2021

“This course really breaks down writing a case report. It turned what I felt as a daunting task into something manageable. I really valued the downloadable slides that I can save for future reference and the quizzes at the end to help me focus on what is important to know. After taking this course, I now feel more prepared to tackle the project of writing a case report.”

- Dana Dragone, doctoral student 2019

“I enjoyed the simple, broken down steps for how to complete each section for a case report. Also, the various multimedia presentations of the modules were invaluable for learning and retention!”

- Sara Jaye Fenton, doctoral student 2019

Course Curriculum


  Step by Step Guide: Part 2 - WHY it might have happened
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  Case Report Structure: Part 3 - Finalizing your case report
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  How Did We Do?
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Frequently Asked Questions


When does the course start and finish?
The course starts now and is self-paced — you decide when you start and when you finish.
How long do I have access to the course?
Once you have enrolled in this course you have access to the course for one year.
Is this course available in languages other than English?
While we do not currently have complete translations of the course, video captions are available in Chinese (Simplified), Japanese, Portuguese, Russian, and Spanish. Translations of the CARE checklist and writing outline are available in Chinese, Croatian, Dutch, French, German, Japanese, Korean, Portuguese, Russian, and Spanish.

Get started now!