Research and Academia

Research is everywhere and is the reason we do things the way we do. It can also be referred to as experimental, testing, investigating, exploring and studying.

What is Research

The Oxford dictionary describes research as “the systematic investigation into and study of material and sources in order to establish facts and reach new conclusions.”

Research is everywhere and is the reason we do things the way we do. It can also be referred to as experimental, testing, investigating, exploring and studying. The overall aim of research is to:

Improve healthcare outcomes
Enhance patient wellbeing
Influence health and care policies

How do we do Research?

Research can start with a question, something we want to understand further.

How?
Why?
Who?
When?
What?

Sometimes it can start with a hypothesis where we think we know the answer but need to confirm this.

In order to find the answer to your question or to try and confirm your hypothesis, the easiest way to do this is to conduct experiments. By conducting these “experiments” the aim is to confirm that what we are doing is the best way of doing it, or it may show you that a different approach would be better, a new medication may benefit the patient more.

Types of research?

There are many types of research (*add link). The most common types of research within the NHS are observational research and interventional research.

ADD WHAT LINKS ABOVE AND BELOW?

Observational research (*add link) is research that observes in order for data to be collected. These types of studies may look at groups of people who have disease vs those who do not or look at people with the same disease but different lifestyles in order to make sense of how diseases occur and health outcomes.

Interventional research (*add link) are studies where people are recruited to trial a new drug, a new procedure or a medical device.

Both types of research have the common outcome of changing future practice or in some cases showing you that practice you already do is the best at this time.