Report writing
REPORT WRITING
CLEAR AND LOGIC
Principles of writing up research
1) Define readership and their requirements
If dissertation, then examiners, if for a
journal, peer reviewers, health professionals
2) Be concise
Limit words, but write everything that
needs to be said
3) Enough time
Allow enough time for reviewing and
editing
Principles of writing up research
4) Coherent, logic narrative
Not a complete summary of everything done;
focus on take home message while remaining
honest; sentences and arguments linked logically
5) Objectives drives the ‘write-up’
Problem statement; literature review, methods,
results discussion; test report against objectives
6) Clear meaning, logic structure, ERROR free
Sections of Report
1) Abstract –concise
first impression, why research was done,
method used, main findings, conclusion
2) Introduction
short statement of existing knowledge, gap
identified & why study was done (relevant,
up-to-date references) also how the study
findings will be implemented-- funnel
Sections of Report
3) Literature Review
should flow from objectives, not precede
them –WHAT IS KNOWN ABOUT THE
QUESTION BEING POSED get to point of
review asap use relevant, recent and credible
sources not just a summary, be critical, thus
evaluate articles and state how it contributed
to existing knowledge
Sections of Report
4) Methods used
setting of study, study design, population,
sampling strategy, sample size, calculations,
measurement instruments and their validity
and reliability, was pilot study done
(contributed to final quality), statistical
analyses in detail (so that a knowledgeable
person should be able to verify the results),
software used, ethical clearance
Valid Instrument
This study made use of self-administered questionnaires. The
questionnaire used was based on several other questionnaires
used in epidemiological studies on respiratory diseases. These
are the ATS-DLD-78-A questionnaire, used for respondents of 13
or more years of age (Ferris, 1978), the Canadian Air Quality and
Health Study questionnaire (NHW/HPB-190-03040), the Harvard
School of Public Health’s Children’s Health Study Questionnaire
(NHW/HPB-190-03210) and the Vaal Triangle Air Pollution and
Health Study questionnaire. All of these questionnaires have
been extensively tested and reviewed by a large body of experts.
An example of the questionnaire used is attached as Appendix A.
Sections of Report
5) Results
start with response rate (how many
approached, how many participated, or how
many records sought, how many found),
tables and figures to follow logically, start
with descriptive characteristics stats. (age,
gender, location, socio-economic status)
then exposure variables (independent
variables), outcomes variables (dependent
variables)
Selection Process of Study Population
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• Descriptive studies stop here. Analytical
studies continue with stats analyses to
compare groups or find associations between
variables
• Univariate analyses
compare two groups (malnourished vs
nourished) for risk of TB = bivariate (2 groups)
Determine unadjusted OR/RR because other
variables not taken into account yet
Sections of the Report
Multivariate or adjusted analyses
adjusted OR (other variables, confounding
taken into account) Results section should
direct the reader to main findings and point
out interesting and or surprising results
Decide on presenting results – tables or
graphs NOT both Tables must be informative
enough to stand on its own
Presentation of data
The gender distribution of a class of grade 5 Students is presented as a
table and a graph below.
Gender
Male
Female
Total
n (%)
56 (39)
87 (61)
143 (100)
Male
39%
Female
61%
Descriptive stats – categorical
variables
The proportion of each race group in the South
African population is presented below.
Indians
2%
100
White
9%
80
80
60
Coloured
9%
40
9
20
Black
80%
2
9
0
Black
Coloured
Indians
White
STATISTICAL ANALYSIS
• The data collected by questionnaire are categorical
(nominal/ordinal) in nature and were summarised by means
of frequencies, percentages and cross-tabulations. At a
univariate level the data from 1990 were compared with that
of 2003 by employing McNemer’s test for symmetry, while for
2003 outcome variables (upper respiratory and lower
respiratory variables) were tested for association with
demographic/risk/environmental factors using Pearson’s chisquare test or, when applicable, Fisher’s exact test. The crude
(unadjusted) odd ratios (ORs) along with their 95% confidence
intervals were also found. Following the within 2003 analyses
demographic/risk/environmental factors “significant” at a
0.20 level of significance, were studied in a multivariate data
analysis using logistic regression.
CRUDE Odds Ratios
UPPER RESPIRATORY ILLNESSES
Risk Factor
Cases
Controls
CrudeOR
95% c i of OR
P value
Sinusitis
Allergy (being allergic)
45/102
19/70
2.119
1.051; 4.341
0.026
47/86
18/87
4.619
2.253; 9.601
<0.001
21/36
41/133
3.141
1.377; 7.221
0.003
Hay fever
Allergy (being allergic)
Earache, hay fever and sinusitis
Allergy (being allergic)
ADJUSTED Odds Ratios
• In stepwise logistic regression, the following risk
factors were identified for sinusitis:
• Being allergic –
adjusted OR 2.3 (1.13; 4.74) p = 0.022
• Living outside the Vaal Triangle was found to being
slightly protective –
adjusted OR 0.71 (0.48; 1.04) p = 0.07
marginally significant
• Being overweight.
Adjusted OR 2.17 (1.03; 4.61) p = 0.04
SECTIONS OF REPORT
• In results section, do not discuss or compare
with other studies, or give limitations or
interpret results
6) Discussion
Most difficult section, needs interpretation
so have to draw info from other sources as
well and have to refer back to analyses, do
NOT include anything new, that were not in
result
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• Be objective in the discussion, not focus on
what you would have liked the results to show
• Discuss with peers and have it reviewed by
colleagues – leave enough time for this
discussion section
7) Conclusion (may be left out)
short, focus on main findings, implications
and recommendations
SECTIONS OF REPORT
9) References
follow a single known style – Harvard or
Vancouver
Grey literature: – reports from commissions,
organisations, government
Internet: URL (Uniform Resource Location)
not sufficient
SECTIONS OF REPORT
10) Appendices
In a dissertation/thesis – questionnaire;
consent form
In a journal – Tables, figures, documents
relevant to an argument in the article,
technical detail