Health Services Research Methods: A Guide to Best Practice / Edition 1

by Nick Black, Barnaby Reeves, John Brazier, Ray Fitzpatrick

Overview

An up to date account of all that is known about the key methods used in health services research. It describes the uses and limitations of the principal methods based on the findings of the NHS Health Technology Assessment Programme. Each chapter makes suggestions for best practice.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780727912756
Publisher:	Wiley
Publication date:	11/09/1998
Pages:	284
Product dimensions:	5.54(w) x 8.46(h) x 0.68(d)

About the Author

Nick Black and Barnaby Reeves are the authors of Health Services Research Methods: A Guide to Best Practice, published by Wiley.

Table of Contents

Contributors.

Foreword.

1.Researching health services.

Part one: measurement of benefits and costs.

2.Patient-assessed outcome measures.

3.The use of health-related quality of life measures in economic evaluation.

4.Collecting resource use data in clinical studies.

5.Designing and using patient and staff questionnaires.

Part two: Methods of evaluating health care.

6.Choosing between randomised and non-randomised studies.

7.Comparison of effect sizes derived from randomised and non-randomised studies.

8.Factors that limit the number, quality, and progress of randomised trials.

9.Ehics of randomised trials.

10.Implications of sociocultural contexts for ethics of randomised trials.

11.Evaluation of health care interventions at area dn organisation level.

12.Qualitative methos in health services research.

Part three: Statistical methods.

13.Statistical methods: good practice and identifying opportunities for innovation.

14.An introduction to bayesian methods in health services research.

15.Quality of life aassessment and survival data.

Part four: Presenting, interpreting, and synthesising evidence.

16.Systematic reviews of randomised trials.

17.Handling uncertainty in economic evaluations of health care interventions.

18.Consensus development methods for creating clinical guidelines.

Part five: Future developments.

19.Horizon scanning: early identification of new health care technologies.

20.Evaluating new and fast-changing technologies.

21.Research implementation methods.

Appendices.

I What does "systematic" mean for reviews of methods?.

Ii Different types of systematic review in health services research.

Index

Editorial Reviews

Reviewer: Douglas S. Wakefield, PhD (University of Iowa )
Description: This book provides a highly condensed introduction and basic description of many measurement issues and instruments used today in health services research. The book is the product of the unique efforts of the British National Health Service (NHS) Health Technology Assessment Programme to systematically review methodological issues and approaches to measuring health services outcomes. It consists of edited summaries of the findings of the first 21 of 46 commissioned reviews undertaken by groups of health services researchers and scholars throughout the United Kingdom.
Purpose: The editors' stated purpose is ". . . to provide a state-of-the-art guide to many of the key methods used in health services research .... (and) provide an accessible account of the latest thinking about health services research methods for a wide range of health practitioners, students, and researchers who are planning or are undertaking studies of health care." The great need for information about the appropriateness, effectiveness, and efficiency of health care services has generated an equally high need for access to information about the best methods with which to assess these services. Thus, this book potentially offers something of value to a growing audience. To their credit, the editors explicitly acknowledge the obvious problem of adequately achieving optimal topic depth for a highly heterogeneous audience (students, clinicians, and researchers). Overall, the editors are successful in providing a guide to serve as an excellent starting point for individuals entering the health services research methodological jungle.
Audience: The intended audience is very broad and heterogeneous, ranging from students and healthcare practitioners to researchers who have an interest in studying health services. This is an excellent resource for students and healthcare practitioners who are inexperienced in and wish to quickly learn more about, a broad range of program evaluation and health services research methodological issues and techniques. In general, chapter references will be helpful for those wishing to gain the knowledge and expertise required to conduct health services research. For researchers, the value of this book is not the depth with which particular topics are treated, but rather the rapid overview which it can provide for topics that may be unfamiliar to researchers.
Features: The 21 chapters are organized under five general headings: Measurement of Benefits and Costs; Methods of Evaluation Health; Statistical Methods; Presenting, Interpreting, and Synthesizing Evidence; and Future Developments. This organizational framework is sensible and helps readers quickly identify those chapters of particular interest. The chapters are short (average about 12 pages), and are generally written in a concise but readable manner. Offsetting their length, each of the chapters generally contains about 30 references that will effectively help readers locate more in depth treatments of specific topics. Another strength is an emphasis on providing basic definitions of the key terms. The index is reasonably complete and accurate and thus provides readers with quick access to different applications of these terms throughout the book — a definite value for the inexperienced researcher. If one accepts the editors' stated purpose to present a work that summarizes rather than provides an in depth treatment of the health services research methodological issues that are relevant to a widely divergent audience, there are few negatives. For the experienced researcher, one is left wanting more in terms of both depth and breadth of coverage. Likewise, novice researchers should be clearly forewarned that while this text will acquaint them with a wide range of key issues and critical terminology, it will not adequately prepare them to conduct or fully critique others' research. Finally, the relatively small print size when combined with a concise writing style and relatively little white space makes this book a bit difficult to read.
Assessment: This book is not readily comparable to other works addressing health services research methodological issues for several reasons. First, the content is derived from a unique program of commissioned research summaries sponsored by the British National Health Service. Second, the intent is to summarize and acquaint the reader with many different methodological issues and techniques quickly, as opposed to providing in depth explanations. Third, it is written to be accessible by a wide range of individuals, and not a single homogeneous group. Finally, this book presents only the first 21 of 46 commissioned reviews. Clearly, the stage has been set for its sequel. In summary, this text would be of greatest value to the student or health practitioner who is an interested but inexperienced health services program evaluator or researcher. Its primary value to experienced health services researchers is mainly as a quick reference to content areas with which they may be unfamiliar.

Doody's Review Service

2 Stars from Doody

Summarizes the findings of studies commissioned by the British National Health Service Health Technology Assessment Program, providing a guide to many of the key methods used in health services research. Contains sections on measurement of benefits and costs, methods of evaluating health care, statistical methods, presenting and interpreting evidence, and future developments. Each chapter provides practical recommendations, and research evidence is illustrated by case studies. Of interest to health care researchers. Annotation c. by Book News, Inc., Portland, Or.

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