RESEARCH METHODOLOGY

HMCU001
 INTRODUCTION TO RESEARCH

Learning Objectives

• Define research in general and health systems research in particular

• Enumerate the characteristics of research

• Identify the different types of research

• List the essential features of health systems research

• Describe the broad divisions (steps) involved in the research process

• Explain the roles of research in development

 Introduction

• The main goal of national health development

is to help people achieve good health so they
can actively participate in their communities.
• To achieve this, countries need to choose
effective strategies, which requires detailed
and accurate information about their current
health systems.
 Introduction
• Unfortunately, such information is often lacking ,
inadequate, or unreliable.

• As a result, decisions are based on assumptions

and unjustified conclusions and often result in
inappropriate policy choices.

• In this regard, the search for scientific knowledge

and information should be strongly supported.
 Introduction

• Research in the context of public health thus aims to provide

all aspects of information necessary for planning and the
effective implementation of a health system.

• For all communities, whether affluent or poor, health research

is the top priority.

• The research questions are formidable: how to join with policy

makers and communities in assessing priority needs, planning,
financing and implementing programs, and evaluating them in
terms of coverage, efficiency and effectiveness.
Definition and Characteristics of Research

• Definition: Research is a scientific inquiry

aimed at learning new facts and testing ideas.

• It is the systematic collection, analysis and

interpretation of data to generate new
knowledge and answer a certain question or
solve a problem.
 Characteristics of Research

• It demands a clear statement of the problem

• It requires a plan (it is not aimlessly “looking”

for something in the hope that you will come
across a solution)

• It builds on existing data, using both positive

and negative findings
 Characteristics of Research
• New data should be collected as required and
be organized in such a way that they answer
the research question(s)

• For example, to determine the body mass

index, you need height, weight but also
gender.
 Types of Research
• Research covers topics in every field of science and
perceptions of its scope and activities are unlimited.

• The classical broad divisions of research are: basic

and applied research.

• The basic research is necessary to generate new

knowledge and technologies to deal with major
unresolved health problems.
 Types of Research
• Applied research is necessary to identify
priority problems and to design and evaluate
policies and programs that will deliver the
greatest health benefit, making optimal use of
available resources.
 Types of Research
• Quantitative and Qualitative researches:

• Quantitative research answers the questions:

how much? How many? How often? To what
extent?

• Qualitative research answers the question that

begin with why? How? In what way?
 Types of Research
• Early forms of research originated in the natural
sciences such as biology, chemistry, physics,
geology etc. and was concerned with investigating
things which we could observe and measure in
some way.

• Such observations and measurements can be

made objectively and repeated by other
researchers. This process is referred to as
“quantitative” research.
 Types of Research
• Much later, along came researchers working in the
social sciences: psychology, sociology,
anthropology etc.

• They were interested in studying human behavior

and the social world inhabited by human beings.

• They found increasing difficulty in trying to explain

human behavior in simply measurable terms.
 Types of Research
• Measurements tell us how often or how many
people behave in a certain way but they do
not adequately answer the “why” and “how”
questions.

• Research which attempts to increase our

understanding of why things are the way they
are in our social world and why people act the
ways they do is “qualitative” research.
 Types of Research
• Qualitative research is concerned with the social
aspects of our world and seeks to answer
questions about:
– Why people behave the way they do

– How opinions and attitudes are formed

– How people are affected by the events that go on around

them

– How and why cultures have developed in the way they have
The rest of the session focuses
on quantitative research
 HEALTH RESEARCH
• Health research is the application of principles
of research on health

• It is the generation of new knowledge using

scientific method to identify and deal with
health problems.

• In most cases, health research has been divided

into three overlapping groups.
 HEALTH RESEARCH
• Essential health research: Consists of
activities to define the health problems of a
given country or community, to measure their
importance and to assure the quality of
activities to deal with them.
 HEALTH RESEARCH
• Clinical research: In its widest sense, this
group of topics ranges from studies of the
prevention and diagnosis of diseases through
new methods of treatment to problems of
care and rehabilitation.

• Examples include clinical trials of disease

prevention and the design of new
chemotherapeutic agents.
 HEALTH RESEARCH
• Biomedical research: It is the most basic part
of health research which demands more
resources, facilities and skilled investigators.
The results of biomedical research are more
often of universal importance and thus of
general significance.
 Health Systems Research
• It is a component of health research.

• Research that supports health development has

come to be known as Health Systems Research.

• It is ultimately concerned with improving the health

of a community, by enhancing the efficiency and
effectiveness of the health system as an integral part
of the overall process of socioeconomic
development.
 Definition of “health system”
• A set of cultural beliefs about health and illness
that forms the basis for health-seeking and
health-promoting behaviour.

• The institutional arrangements within which

that behaviour occurs; and

• The socioeconomic (political) physical context

for those beliefs and institutions.
 Definition of “health system”
• In short, it consists of what people believe and
know about health and illness and what they
do to remain healthy and cure diseases.

• Beliefs and action are usually closely

connected. For example, if in a society people
perceive germs as the cause of disease, they
will look for modern (biomedical) health care.
 Definition of “health system”
• The institutional arrangements within which the health-
seeking and health-promoting behaviour occurs may
include:

• The individual, family and the community

• Health care services

• Private sector: traditional and modern medical practice (legal or
illegal)
• Public (governmental) sector
• Health workers, health institutions, etc.
• Health related sectors e.g. education,
agriculture, etc.

• The international sector, including bilateral

and multilateral donor agencies (UNICEF,
WHO, etc.) that may support health as well as
Essential Features of Health Systems Research
(HSR)
 Main components of research work

• Preparing a research proposal

• Fieldwork (i.e., data collection)

• Analyzing data and preparing a research

report
 Exercise
• The health of any community depends on the
interaction and balance between the health needs
of the community, the health resources that are
available, and the selection and application of
health and health related interventions. Discuss!

• To invest in research is to invest for a better future.

Does this statement sound true? Justify your
answer.