Introduction to Clinical Research
Chapter 1, 2 and 3 Questions
I.
Chapter 1: Read pages 1-5 and answer the following questions:
Due date: 12/8/15
1. What is health research?
The process of systematically investigating a single well-defined aspect of physical,
mental, or social well-being.
Research – the process of systematically and carefully investigating a subject in
order to learn or discover new information about the world. The goal is often to identify
trends or develop new theories or methods that can be more broadly applied.
Health research:
Lab research – immunology, microbiology, and molecular biology
(conducted in controlled environments of a special research facility)
Clinical trials – surgery, pharmacology, physical therapy (human
subjects)
Surveys – public health
2. Give at least 3 examples of health research from the text.
- Is taking a daily multivitamin associated with a decreased risk of colon cancer?
- According to women receiving mammograms, what factors most influenced their
decision to seek out routine breast cancer screening?
- What factors predict binge drinking behavior in college and university students?
3. What are the 4 goals of health research?
- The identification of emerging or existing health problems
- The testing of new interventions for preventing or treating diseases
- Contribution of information to scientific literature that researchers and
policymakers use when creating new plans/policies
- The synthesis of existing knowledge so that it can be applied by others
4. What are the personal and societal benefits of health research?
Societal Benefits
Personal benefits
ID of health concerns and/or methods
Attainment of new knowledge by
for promoting health and preventing
systematically investigating a topic
disease and disability
Acquisition of evidence for improving
Development/refinement of a new skill set
clinical and public health practices and
policies
Expansion of scientific literature that
Satisfaction of exploring an area of interest
sets the foundation for future research, and seeing a project through to completion
policies and practices
5. Make a flow chart of the 5 steps of health research.
Identify a study
question
Select a study
approach
Design a study and
collect data
Analyze
data
Report
findings
approach
II.
Chapter 2: Read
pages 7-13 and answer the following questions
Due Date: 12/10/15
1. What are the four steps that are part of identifying a study question?
- Selecting a general topic
- Reviewing the literature
- Focusing the research question
- Assembling a support team
2. One of the first steps in selecting a topic is brainstorming and topic mapping. What
does this mean and what types of questions can be asked during brainstorming
sessions?
Brainstorm to create a list of possible research topics - maybe list diseases or population
groups – and do some research.
Brainstorming questions:
- What research topics are personally meaningful?
- What knowledge and skills do I already have?
- What skills do I want to develop?
- Do I have connections- colleagues, professors, professional contacts – that I can get
information from?
- Where can I make a contribution?
3. Why would you use a key word search and what is the MeSH database?
Make a key word list so that it is easier to search for information on your topic.
MeSH database – (medical subject haedings) developed by the U.S. Library of Medicine
and helpful in narrowing the scope of your research area and identifying the full extent
of a research area. Focuses the researcher.
4. What is the formula for expressing most topics in population health research?
(Exposure) and (disease/outcome) in (population)
5. What are the 4 main types of exposures? List them and give at least 3 examples for
each.
- Socioeconomic status (income, age, race)
- Health-related behaviors (diet, exercise, hygiene)
- Health status (immune status, genetics, existing health problems)
- Environmental exposures (pollution, population density, travel)
6. What are the 4 main types of diseases? List them and give at least 3 examples for each.
- Injuries (bone fractures, burns, poisonings)
- Communicable/infectious diseases (cholera, malaria, syphilis)
- Non-communicable/chronic diseases ( asthma, cancer, diabetes)
- Neuropsychiatric diseases ( Alzheimer’s, depression, PTSD)
7. What is the population? Give 3 examples of a population that could be used in a clinical
trial.
Population – the group of individuals, communities, or organizations to be examined.
Adults with diabetes
Teachers with 10 years of classroom experience
Women living in NJ
III.
Chapter 3: Read pages 15-20 and answer the following questions
Due Date: 12/10/15
1. What does “reviewing the literature” encompass?
To do background reading about a topic.
2. What are some ways you can use factsheets, websites, and informal sources?
WHO and CDC have factsheets about various diseases where you can get information
about diseases and risk factors.
Governmental organizations (UN) have factsheets and websites with demographic,
political, economic, and geographic information.
Stick with the more formal, accepted sources of information.
3. How can you use statistical reports?
Some statistical information is very relevant – prevalence of exposure in a world region,
annual global incidence of disease, size of a population.
4. What is an abstract database and how is it used for clinical research?
Database that has paragraph-length summaries of articles, chapters and books. Give
brief descriptions of the study population, study design, and key findings (CINAH,
Embase, MEDLINE).
5. How can you locate full-text articles?
- Some available free online
- Some available in digital archives (PubMed Central)
- University libraries subscriptions
- Write to the author
6. What makes research original? Give an example.
For research to be considered original, it needs to have only one substantive difference
from previous work…It could be a new exposure of interest, a new source population, a
new time period under study, or a new perspective on a field of exploration.
Example:
Previous study – older adults (population) who take 30 minute walks several
times a week (exposure) score higher on memory tests (outcome)
New original study - do older adults (population) who take 30 minute walks
several times a week (exposure) improve their balance (outcome)?