300872: Epidemiology Autumn - Epidemiology As a Health Practitioner Science - Epidemiology Protocol - Literature Research Assessment Answer

Internal Code: 1AFHBA Code: 300872 Assignment Task: 300872 The MODULE EXERCISES are problem-based, each focusing on a practitioner challenge  which requires literature research to understand the basic problem, application of logic to understand how risk factors have interacted in its development, and analysis with a discussion of results to identify the magnitude and determine an intervention strategy. Here a PROTOCOL (plan or “blueprint”) for a comprehensive epidemiological investigation or research study into a topic of interest or importance to the student is researched, planned and prepared. It must be based on a real disease or health state and identify relevant risk factors in the Australian (or relevant country) setting. Epidemiology Protocol: 300872

1. The Protocol is a plan for an epidemiological investigation or research project which can be tailored to the s- student's own particular needs. It is the foundation for a professional field project which the student could carry out when employed, to investigate a health state or problem in the student’s own area of interest. As such, it has significant value for inclusion in a CV or employment application. Please note that it is a plan only for an intervention or research project. The actual plan will not be executed (ie:  a questionnaire will be constructed as part of the Protocol, but a house-to-house or patient survey must not be carried out). The Protocol is, however, expected to be realistic, reliable and based on factual circumstances and place, and this will be taken into account during the assessment of the work. 300872
2. During the Module Exercises, students will learn how to carry out rapid epidemiological assessments to detect the environmental causes of ill health in small groups in environmental, occupational and social settings. More advanced investigations demand a more complex approach and take longer to execute than the rapid assessments covered in the first part of the semester. For this reason students are taken through the completion of an investigation/research Protocol (plan), as part of the unit. Medium to large scale epidemiological investigations are carried out with the same rigour and approach as any scientific research project, and for this reason the student should apply the same criteria used in scientific reporting. This objective will pay off when students are working, as those with epidemiological experience or qualifications are often called on to head up research projects because they know how to initiate such a program, can exercise the right research rigour during its execution and understand basic analytical approaches. 300872
3. For the Protocol the student is required to identify a disease or health/fitness state of concern or interest. By consulting the literature, the physical, chemical, microbiological, social or behavioral risk factors associated with that state are next identified. This involves evidence of reading the literature as an important part of the Protocol, as explained later.A protocol is like a building plan in that it sets out what the project will be called, why the work is being carried out, the underlying objectives, who is to perform the work, when and where the work will take place, its duration, where the ideas behind the plan have come from, what type of design is to be followed, what analytical method will be used to assess the raw data, how it will be presented to one’s organization, the scientific community and the public, what presentation methods will be used, which resources are available and which are still needed, what the literature says about the topic, the ethical constraints, how long the study will take and what budget is anticipated, plus any other details which may be relevant. The student should make it an objective to see that the Protocol addresses these requirements. 300872
4. A protocol as a planning tool must give a clear idea of what the investigator or researcher wants to do, in order that the feasibility of the intended project can be assessed and mistakes anticipated by ?thinking through the problem? before valuable time and money is expended. Part of this involves working through the problem and its assessment on paper to identify, explore and address the potential pitfalls and problems before they happen.
5. A protocol is like a building plan in that it sets out what the project will be called, why the work is being carried out, the underlying objectives, who is to perform the work, when and where the work will take place, its duration, where the ideas behind the plan have come from, what type of design is to be followed, what analytical method will be used to assess the raw data, how it will be presented to one’s organisation, the scientific community and the public, what presentation methods will be used, which resources are available and which are still needed, what the literature says about the topic, the ethical constraints, how long the study will take and what budget is anticipated, plus any other details which may be relevant. The student should make it an objective to see that the Protocol addresses these requirements. 300872
6. A protocol as a planning tool must give a clear idea of what the investigator or researcher wants to do, in order that the feasibility of the intended project can be assessed and mistakes anticipated by ?thinking through the problem? before valuable time and money is expended. Part of this involves working through the problem and its assessment on paper to identify, explore and address the potential pitfalls and problems before they happen.
7. Just as an architect produces a plan or a model of an intended building, so the investigator produces a protocol. Inspiration for a great building or for a great investigation or piece of research may initially be inspirational, based on the ability of an individual to think in an integrative way and to hypothesize, but at some time these visions must be brought back to reality in terms of known limitations which may already be found in the literature, or by visiting the actual place where the health issue exists. Successful implementation of visionary research ultimately relies on careful planning for the implementation of work in terms of a set of logical and pre-determined steps. In this regard, study of the literature (journal publications and sometimes books) can assist the investigator to avoid many of the pitfalls others have made and prevent them from attempting to ’reinvent the wheel’.
8. Repeating an existing research project in a new place to acquire information about local conditions is perfectly acceptable and in this regard, the literature will give vital clues as to tried and proven methodologies, or as to a study carried out in another place which could be locally repeated to assess potential local risk factors.
9. The student should consider suitable topics for this assignment during the earlier part of the semester and attempt to include ideas acquired from a number of modules in the Protocol. Discuss the feasibility of these ideas with the lecturer as they arise. Here some preliminary reading of the literature (papers secured using Scopus search engine, books from the library, institutional web sites, etc.) will be needed to give you an understanding of each disease and its likely risk factors.
10. It is expected that the final assignment (Epidemiology Protocol) will be based on a real problem or setting, so students should identify the place where the problem might happen and carry out a certain amount of field visiting on their own, during which discussions would take place with available experts, to develop a feasible Protocol. In this regard, visits to State Public Health Units, local government departments or special institutes would be rewarding in that staff are usually pleased to discuss issues with students. While there is no requirement that students provide a written record of such visits, reference to any such visits in the Protocol would be useful. 300872
11. A compulsory part of  the Protocol is the production of a questionnaire to elicit information from a sample of the population (techniques and calculations for estimating sample size must be shown). While it is not intended that the student carry out an actual survey using the questionnaire, it could nevertheless be pilot tested by applying it to a small but relevant group of 4-5 fellow students, work colleagues, family or friends, with their permission, in order test their understanding of the questions, and the ability of the questions to elicit the right information. Numerical data obtained from this pilot study does not have to be presented but its existence of pilot testing could be mentioned. 300872
12. It is suggested that in the final Protocol students show ?before  and after?  versions  of their questionnaires (before and after pilot testing) with an explanation of why the changes were made. Some of the later Study Modules discuss methods for the successful construction and use of questionnaires, and their use as standardised instruments for the accurate gathering of data. While the exercises associated with these Modules do not have to be handed in for marking, completion of them will assist in developing the Portfolio.
13. It is important that the proposed study is realistic,  being based on fact and on existing conditions, and that it is both viable and relevant in terms of local epidemiological constraints and needs. If you choose a health condition for your investigation and there have been few relevant papers published, this might be a warning sign that the con- dition is too rare or difficult to study effectively, or has multiple hypothesised causes (risk factors) which are difficult to prove or tease apart. Many behavioural problems, such as anxiety neurosis, or social problems, such as motor vehicle accidents, fall into this category, and this may suggest why we have been relatively unsuccessful at identifying and addressing the base causes of these problems. It is suggested you discuss feasibility with the lecturer. If you feel, however, that you have developed capacity during the program to design a complex protocol, the challenge presented might count in your favour when the mark is awarded.
14. To proceed with the assignment, you could initially identify more than one disease or health state in which you are interested or which seem important, explore the literature for previous studies and identify the feasibility of a local study. Alternately you might find out that a local study already exists, so that a design for repeating this would not be very highly regarded by the examiner, unless you have a new perspective to offer. Do not forget that you need disease information, risk factor information and probably demographic information about the general nature of the effected population. A primary aim will be to carry out analysis of the disease in terms of the local risk factors you have identified to see if these contribute significantly to its occurrence. This will inevitably involve the identification and explanation of the analytical method you would apply to the data, although you will not have any actual data to work with. Refer back to the ?Toolkit? lectures to identify a suitable method. The study must therefore be more than a mere description of a health problem and its contributory factors. Methods for analysing different ?blocks? of data must be identified and described. Do not worry if this all seems daunting on the first read-through of this section as you still have to learn the analytical techniques which are carefully and clearly explained in the lectures and notes. 300872
15. Reading the literature will help you to decide on a Protocol topic, and once this decision is made you should select the three most important papers and carry out a journal review of each these. The review for each paper should be in three parts; a summary, assessment (discussion of the meaning, strengths and weaknesses of the paper), and statement of relevance to your own study, as presented in your Protocol. These analyses are included in the submission; equal marks being awarded for each of the three parts. The papers can be used again in referencing the text and can be mentioned in your final reference list so time spent on your journal reviews has potential to produce outcomes in two assessable parts of the Protocol. No referencing or cross-referencing for each review is expected as the source of all information is already being obtained from a peer-reviewed document. 300872

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