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Evaluation of a learner-designed course for teaching health research skills in Ghana
BACKGROUND: In developing countries the ability to conduct locally-relevant health research and high quality education are key tools in the fight against poverty. The objective of our study was to evaluate the effectiveness of a novel UK accredited, learner-designed research skills course delivered...
Autores principales: | , , , , , , |
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Formato: | Texto |
Lenguaje: | English |
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BioMed Central
2007
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Materias: | |
Acceso en línea: | https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC1913503/ https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/17596260 http://dx.doi.org/10.1186/1472-6920-7-18 |
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author | Bates, Imelda Ansong, Daniel Bedu-Addo, George Agbenyega, Tsiri Akoto, Alex Yaw Osei Nsiah-Asare, Anthony Karikari, Patrick |
author_facet | Bates, Imelda Ansong, Daniel Bedu-Addo, George Agbenyega, Tsiri Akoto, Alex Yaw Osei Nsiah-Asare, Anthony Karikari, Patrick |
author_sort | Bates, Imelda |
collection | PubMed |
description | BACKGROUND: In developing countries the ability to conduct locally-relevant health research and high quality education are key tools in the fight against poverty. The objective of our study was to evaluate the effectiveness of a novel UK accredited, learner-designed research skills course delivered in a teaching hospital in Ghana. METHODS: Study participants were 15 mixed speciality health professionals from Komfo Anokye Teaching Hospital, Kumasi, Ghana. Effectiveness measures included process, content and outcome indicators to evaluate changes in learners' confidence and competence in research, and assessment of the impact of the course on changing research-related thinking and behaviour. Results were verified using two independent methods. RESULTS: 14/15 learners gained research competence assessed against UK Quality Assurance Agency criteria. After the course there was a 36% increase in the groups' positive responses to statements concerning confidence in research-related attitudes, intentions and actions. The greatest improvement (45% increase) was in learners' actions, which focused on strengthening institutional research capacity. 79% of paired before/after responses indicated positive changes in individual learners' research-related attitudes (n = 53), 81% in intention (n = 52) and 85% in action (n = 52). The course had increased learners' confidence to start and manage research, and enhanced life-long skills such as reflective practice and self-confidence. Doing their own research within the work environment, reflecting on personal research experiences and utilising peer support and pooled knowledge were critical elements that promoted learning. CONCLUSION: Learners in Ghana were able to design and undertake a novel course that developed individual and institutional research capacity and met international standards. Learning by doing and a supportive peer community at work were critical elements in promoting learning in this environment where tutors were scarce. Our study provides a model for delivering and evaluating innovative educational interventions in developing countries to assess whether they meet external quality criteria and achieve their objectives. |
format | Text |
id | pubmed-1913503 |
institution | National Center for Biotechnology Information |
language | English |
publishDate | 2007 |
publisher | BioMed Central |
record_format | MEDLINE/PubMed |
spelling | pubmed-19135032007-07-10 Evaluation of a learner-designed course for teaching health research skills in Ghana Bates, Imelda Ansong, Daniel Bedu-Addo, George Agbenyega, Tsiri Akoto, Alex Yaw Osei Nsiah-Asare, Anthony Karikari, Patrick BMC Med Educ Research Article BACKGROUND: In developing countries the ability to conduct locally-relevant health research and high quality education are key tools in the fight against poverty. The objective of our study was to evaluate the effectiveness of a novel UK accredited, learner-designed research skills course delivered in a teaching hospital in Ghana. METHODS: Study participants were 15 mixed speciality health professionals from Komfo Anokye Teaching Hospital, Kumasi, Ghana. Effectiveness measures included process, content and outcome indicators to evaluate changes in learners' confidence and competence in research, and assessment of the impact of the course on changing research-related thinking and behaviour. Results were verified using two independent methods. RESULTS: 14/15 learners gained research competence assessed against UK Quality Assurance Agency criteria. After the course there was a 36% increase in the groups' positive responses to statements concerning confidence in research-related attitudes, intentions and actions. The greatest improvement (45% increase) was in learners' actions, which focused on strengthening institutional research capacity. 79% of paired before/after responses indicated positive changes in individual learners' research-related attitudes (n = 53), 81% in intention (n = 52) and 85% in action (n = 52). The course had increased learners' confidence to start and manage research, and enhanced life-long skills such as reflective practice and self-confidence. Doing their own research within the work environment, reflecting on personal research experiences and utilising peer support and pooled knowledge were critical elements that promoted learning. CONCLUSION: Learners in Ghana were able to design and undertake a novel course that developed individual and institutional research capacity and met international standards. Learning by doing and a supportive peer community at work were critical elements in promoting learning in this environment where tutors were scarce. Our study provides a model for delivering and evaluating innovative educational interventions in developing countries to assess whether they meet external quality criteria and achieve their objectives. BioMed Central 2007-06-27 /pmc/articles/PMC1913503/ /pubmed/17596260 http://dx.doi.org/10.1186/1472-6920-7-18 Text en Copyright © 2007 Bates et al; licensee BioMed Central Ltd. http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0 This is an Open Access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License ( (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0) ), which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited. |
spellingShingle | Research Article Bates, Imelda Ansong, Daniel Bedu-Addo, George Agbenyega, Tsiri Akoto, Alex Yaw Osei Nsiah-Asare, Anthony Karikari, Patrick Evaluation of a learner-designed course for teaching health research skills in Ghana |
title | Evaluation of a learner-designed course for teaching health research skills in Ghana |
title_full | Evaluation of a learner-designed course for teaching health research skills in Ghana |
title_fullStr | Evaluation of a learner-designed course for teaching health research skills in Ghana |
title_full_unstemmed | Evaluation of a learner-designed course for teaching health research skills in Ghana |
title_short | Evaluation of a learner-designed course for teaching health research skills in Ghana |
title_sort | evaluation of a learner-designed course for teaching health research skills in ghana |
topic | Research Article |
url | https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC1913503/ https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/17596260 http://dx.doi.org/10.1186/1472-6920-7-18 |
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