Research Methods for Healthcare Professionals - Desklib

This study material covers research methods for healthcare professionals, including the process of social research, criteria and limitations of research design, and data handling. It also includes a case study on the effectiveness of primary care intervention for obese patients with low health literacy. The material covers both qualitative and quantitative research methods and provides recommendations for healthcare professionals.

Research methods for
healthcare professionals

Table of content
1 . Understanding of the different assumptions underlying research into the social sciences and
the nature and status of research methodology................................................................................3
Process of social research............................................................................................................3
Criteria and limitations of the research design............................................................................3
Assessment of the criteria for reliability and validity for the measurement of research data.....3
Features of a good research design..............................................................................................4
2 . Understanding various issues implicit in the research process and their relation with the
specific techniques that have been selected to conduct the study....................................................4
Relationship between methodology and philosophy within research texts.................................4
The qualitative-quantitative debate of social science research....................................................4
Nature of pluralism in research methodology.............................................................................4
A qualitative approach to research design...................................................................................5
A quantitative approach to research design.................................................................................5
Interview or Questionnaire..........................................................................................................5
Proposal of the research...............................................................................................................5
Survey Method.............................................................................................................................6
3 . Understand the processes to complete a research project...........................................................7
Literature review..........................................................................................................................7
Sample of data from the findings.................................................................................................7
Data analysis methods for the data collected...............................................................................7
Data and information from findings in a suitable format to produce results...............................8
Conclusions and recommendations from research findings........................................................8
4 . The quality issues associated with data handling.......................................................................8
Explain the ethical aspects of data handling................................................................................8
Guidelines for handling missing research data............................................................................9
Importance of the referencing system while recording data........................................................9
Challenges and responses to handling social science data..........................................................9
REFERENCES..............................................................................................................................10

1. Understanding of the different assumptions underlying research into the
social sciences and the nature and status of research methodology.
This research aims at evaluating the implementation of the intervention of primary care
provided by the nurses to help obese people who have low health literacy in losing weight. This
research will also try to evaluate the effectiveness of the intervention. This is however
accomplished by interviewing patients of Homerton University hospital. The main causes of
obesity that have been identified are bad lifestyle choices, poor eating habits, excessive stress,
genetics, and other co-morbidities.
Process of social research
The process of social research consists of a step-wise process that initiates with gaining
an understanding of the health issue and formulating the research question for the research. Then
the dependent and independent variables for the research are identified and a hypothesis is
formulated. The subjects for the research are decided and then they are bifurcated into several
groups based on their characteristics (Liamputtong, 2019). Then the designing of the
questionnaire is done which will be responsible for providing the information required for
concluding the research. The information collected is then analyzed for reaching a final result or
conclusion of the research.
Criteria and limitations of the research design
The main strength of this research is that it is conducted using the qualitative method of
research. The questionnaire formulated for the collection of data was effective in gathering the
required information. The study was then reviewed by the experts and subject specialists of the
University of Homerton. One limitation of the study can be that the sample size of the research
might be small. The research is efficient enough to reveal the care experiences of obese patients
who are receiving primary care at the hospital.
Assessment of the criteria for reliability and validity for the measurement of research data
As the obese patients are from different ethnicities and populations so keeping in check
the reliability of the data that is being collected is important. Methods like Cronbach’s Alpha co-
efficient and parallel forms reliability test have been used by the researchers to ensure the
reliability of the samples that have been selected for the research. These methods are also used
for checking the reliability of the data collected.

Features of a good research design
Three methods can be used for designing good research which are a qualitative method, a
quantitative method, and a mixed approach which consists of both qualitative and quantitative
methods (Slattery, Saeri, and Bragge, 2020). At present, the research that is being conducted is
based on the mixed approach that comprises qualitative and quantitative methods for the
collection of reliable data for the research.
2. Understanding various issues implicit in the research process and their
relation with the specific techniques that have been selected to conduct the
study.
Relationship between methodology and philosophy within research texts
Philosophy is the reason for specific behavior of an individual or the reason behind their
actions and reactions. Philosophy, therefore, can be considered an important factor that can affect
research as the behavior of the individuals who are the participants in the study determines the
conclusion of the research. So, the research methodology has to consider the philosophical view
about the behavior of the participants.
The qualitative-quantitative debate of social science research
As per the preference of the researchers and aptness for the study, two methods of
research can be adopted for conducting the research which is qualitative and quantitative. Both
these methods have their importance in the research and have their own. Either of the two
methods can be used for collecting the data in research but it is required that both methods
should be used with maximum specificity and preciseness. The qualitative method is related to
the reasons behind an event and the quantitative method focuses on the statistical data of a
particular event.
Nature of pluralism in research methodology
Pluralism is a concept that avoids the chances of the researcher being biased about one
theory among the various theories used in research. This ensures that the conclusion of the
research is not just based on a single theory but is deduced by comparing the results obtained by
using various theories in the research (Slife, and Reber, 2021). This also ensures that the work
done by other researchers is valued and referred by the researcher of this project and also makes
sure that the researcher collects all the relevant and required information for the study.

A qualitative approach to research design
This type of research method is linked with a collection of the non-numerical form of
information required for concluding the study that is being conducted. This method involves
studying the subject of the research in detail and identifying the important information and then
formulating an efficient methodology for retrieving that information. This method can use the
interview method, observation method, questionnaire method can be used for collecting
qualitative data (Smith, and Zajda, 2018). This method aims at exploring the different meanings
of the subject of study and then find out the perspectives and understandings that the participants
of the research have about the subject of the study. Then these perspectives are analyzed to
conclude the study.
A quantitative approach to research design
A quantitative approach to research design focuses mainly on the collection of numerical
data or statistics relevant to the subject of the research. The collected numerical data is then
further processed through calculations and formulas and the result of the research is based on
these data. This method involves the usage of calculations and scales. The numerical data
collected in this process is bifurcated into four levels namely nominal, ordinal, discrete, and
continuous (Rutberg, and Bouikidis, 2018). Each of these is linked with the other and the
information of the prior level is included in the later one.
Approach to the design research proposal: Research design is the main core of the
research and is what differentiates various researchers from each other. Usually, a basic research
design consists of the following-
Interview or Questionnaire
An effective way that can be used by the researchers for collecting relevant data for any
research is through conducting interviews or presenting the participants of the research with a
questionnaire. Though being an effective and easily performable method, this method also has
certain limitations one of which is the sampling of the research can be completely controlled by
the researcher.
Proposal of the research
The proposal of the research would use a deductive approach, in which the researcher
refers to the previously available information on the topic. The already prevailing information is

used to design the proposal of the research. The theories identified from the prior research are
then used to analyze the hypothesis formulated for the research. Another type of approach is the
inductive approach is opposite to the deductive approach which is a top-down approach and an
inductive approach is a bottom-up approach. This approach is useful in making taking the
specificities in research to general and can also help deduce a summary of the raw data that has
been collected for the research (Boyack, Smith, and Klavans, 2018). There are two types of
hypotheses that have been identified for this research primary and secondary hypotheses. The
primary hypothesis for the study consist of-
 Practice nurses can act as prevention navigators which can result in making them
efficient assessors of obese patients when compared with the control group nurses.
 Intervention practice sessions conducted for patients will allow them to receive proper
assessment and advice for weight loss than the patients in the control group.
 The patients who attended the intervention practice sessions had better chances of
improving their knowledge about healthy practices required to be practiced for losing
weight.
The secondary hypothesis consists of -
 The enrolled patients who attended the invention sessions are more likely to increase
their healthy dietary intake and have a high chance of including exercises in their daily
routine.
 The enrolled patients will have reduced baseline weight and will have better and
improved quality of life.
 The behavior of the general practitioners will also be changed for the betterment and will
increase their confidence in assessing obese patients with low literacy about healthy
practices.
Survey Method
The survey method for the research will consist of interviewing all the patients of the
hospital who are a part of the intervention practice as well as those who are not. This will help
retrieve information about both the groups the enrolled and the control group. The information
received from the two groups will help conclude the research.

3. Understand the processes to complete a research project
Literature review
Health literacy can be defined as the capacity of an individual to acquire, process, and
understand health knowledge and then use that information to make decisions regarding self-
health. Practice nurses playing the role of the prevention navigators can prove to be beneficial in
increasing the level of health literacy in obese patients with low health literacy levels. There has
been a scarcity of evidence that nurses assessing obese patients with low health literacy levels
can help such patients to increase their level of health literacy and thus contribute to helping
them to lose weight. Through this review, the author stated that, if the nurses are made to lead
the patient case conferences and give them the responsibility of assessment, can prove beneficial
in making the care of such patients more effective. The relationship between the patients and the
nurses is an important relationship that benefits both sides. Building good relationships with the
patients helps the nurses to know the health and care needs of the patients which will help to
make the care-providing process more patient-oriented. When talking about the benefits of the
patients, they gain a lot of knowledge from the nurses, be it related to disease, medication,
compliance with the medication, or related to healthy lifestyle knowledge. The nurses are
efficient for this context as they take care of the nutritional intake of the patients and can also
share that knowledge with the patients resulting in helping the patients to increase their level of
health literacy.
Sample of data from the findings
The study was conducted using the method of a randomized trial in which there were two
groups, one which was enrolled in the intervention practices and the other was the control group.
The patients selected were between the age of 40 to 70 years and their BMI was mandated to be
more than 30 kg per meter square. It was made sure that all the participants that were being
selected had a low level of health literacy. Around 40 patients were selected for the study. The
intervention practices the inclusion of the 5 A's approach for chronic disease management which
are- Assess, Advice, Agree, Assist, and Arrange.
Data analysis methods for the data collected
The study reviewed 40 patients which consisted of both participants who were enrolled in
intervention practices and those from the control group. All 40 participants maintained complete

compliance with the research. As all the patients had a low level of health literacy the analysis
was made based on the change in their lifestyle practices and the reduction in their weight. Also,
the severity of the condition of the obese patients was considered while analyzing the data (Clark
and Vealé, 2018).
Data and information from findings in a suitable format to produce results
The interventions consisted of providing the patients with advice related to dietary habits,
physical exercise, the nutritional value of food, decreasing fat intake, and advice regarding stress
management. After the assessment, the results from the interview were more inclined toward the
positive effects of including nurses in the intervention for obesity. The research study proved that
the patients received better advice for obesity management in terms of dietary choices, lifestyle
choices, the inclusion of physical exercise, and management of other reasons that led to the
increase in the BMI index of the patient.
Conclusions and recommendations from research findings
The conclusion that can be drawn from the research is that practice nurses can help
increase the level of health literacy in obese patients. The nurses involved in the intervention
practice for obese patients provide them with the knowledge that they need to have to manage
their weight and bring them within acceptable limits. The nurses can be efficient in analyzing the
patients and understanding the cause of their obesity. This will result in identifying the aptest
advice required by them.
4. The quality issues associated with data handling
Explain the ethical aspects of data handling
The quality issues associated with handling the data that has been collected during the
research are breech of the information asset of the organization as the organization failed at
protecting the patient's information. This might result in a loss of faith in the organization in the
minds of the people (Isbell et.al., 2022). Loss of trust as the result of inadequacy in protecting
people's data is also confirmed by the HIPAA act (Health insurance probability and
accountability act regulations). Other than that unauthorized access to sensitive data results in the
privacy breach of the identity and confidentiality of an individual.

Guidelines for handling missing research data
The participants of the research studies have been provided with certain rights regarding
their privacy and health status to which they should be aware. The participants should be allowed
to practice their legal rights by the research conducting bodies. For these, there are codes of
practices available that help the research professionals avoid practices that are contrary to their
profession.
Importance of the referencing system while recording data
Referencing the research material is important as it helps the researcher to keep track of
the information and its sources from where the information has been derived. Referencing can
also help the researcher to retrieve the missing information.
Challenges and responses to handling social science data
Controlling the level of honesty in the participants in providing the information is the
main challenge in the handling of data related to social science. The capacity of the participants
of the research is also a factor that can not be controlled by the researchers but can have a huge
effect on the study and its result.

REFERENCES
Books and Journals:
Boyack, K.W., Smith, C. and Klavans, R., 2018. Toward predicting research proposal
success. Scientometrics, 114(2), pp.449-461.
Clark, K.R. and Vealé, B.L., 2018. Strategies to enhance data collection and analysis in
qualitative research. Radiologic technology, 89(5), pp.482CT-485CT.
Isbell, D.R., Brown, D., Chen, M., Derrick, D.J., Ghanem, R., Arvizu, M.N.G., Schnur, E.,
Zhang, M. and Plonsky, L., 2022. Misconduct and questionable research practices: The
ethics of quantitative data handling and reporting in applied linguistics. The Modern
Language Journal, 106(1), pp.172-195.
Liamputtong, P. ed., 2019. Handbook of research methods in health social sciences. Singapore::
Springer.
Rutberg, S. and Bouikidis, C.D., 2018. Focusing on the fundamentals: A simplistic
differentiation between qualitative and quantitative research. Nephrology Nursing
Journal, 45(2), pp.209-213.
Slattery, P., Saeri, A.K. and Bragge, P., 2020. Research co-design in health: a rapid overview of
reviews. Health research policy and systems, 18(1), pp.1-13.
Slife, B.D. and Reber, J.S., 2021. Against methodological confinement: Toward a pluralism of
methods and interpretations. Psychology of Religion and Spirituality, 13(1).
Smith, K. and Zajda, J., 2018. Qualitative and quantitative methodologies: A minimalist
view. Education and Society, 36(1), pp.73-83.