TEAM ASSIGNMENT INSTRUCTIONS
Fall 2015
HIMS 650

Overview

Health care analysis is normally worked on in a team environment and should be the basis for strategic decision-making about patient care, business operations, and research. For this assignment each team will select a health oriented research question that can be analyzed using statistical procedures and an existing database.  Each team will produce a research report that may help in formulating policies and/or programs within a health organization or a state or public health agency.

One of the most important parts of this assignment, and the part that will affect the rest of your decisions as a group is the choice of a question to analyze.  It is highly advised that you choose your question at the same time that you find your raw data.  If you choose a question that has no easily accessible data, you will need to modify your question as you progress.  Therefore, finding the raw data that can be easily downloaded into an Excel spreadsheet is an important step.  Since this step is so important, it is recommended that you use the Wonder tool for the CDC database. This tool has known raw data that can be used with Excel (other databases may require you to use other programs besides Excel.  In this class, you are taught how to use Excel.)

Here is the website where you can access the Wonder tool.

http://wonder.cdc.gov

Here is the website for the Wonder Quick Start guide to help you learn how to use the Wonder tool.

http://wonder.cdc.gov/wonder/help/QuickStart.html#Request

Examples of valid questions that can drive health care policy:
1.    Does second hand cigarette smoke increase a woman’s chance of developing breast cancer in her lifetime?
2.    Does a person have an increased risk of cancer living in a certain geographic area?
3.    Do hospital admissions or discharges for a specific condition vary among states?

This assignment offers you an opportunity to exercise your creativity, both individually and as a team. This does not mean that your analysis should be based on conjecture alone. It should be based on sound quantitative and qualitative reasoning. In health care you will hear terms such as strategic decision making, business intelligence, and data-driven decision making. Qualitative and quantitative analysis underlies these decision making processes. Your conclusions should be supported with as much solid background literature as possible.  Your professor will be helping to guide you through the process of producing this report.
Instructions

Develop a health research report of 14 pages formatted in accordance with APA guidelines. There are four parts to the overall submission. These parts are listed below and a more detailed description of what should be included in each are provided below:

1.    The work plan (This includes a title page and brief description of the health research question. The database and variables that will be used in the research study. Note, this database includes the raw data that you will analyze to answer your research question. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention supply many data sets that can be accessed by the public and are applicable to this project. It is highly recommended that you use the Wonder database tool.  http://wonder.cdc.gov).
2.    The literature review
3.    The analysis plan
4.    The final project/paper, which contains the abstract, the previously submitted literature review, methods section, results section, discussion section, conclusions, and references.

Work Plan

You will need to find raw data that you will analyze to solve your research question. Keep this in mind as you develop your research question. This activity is designed to help formulate your research topic.

Literature Review

The literature review should be written as an introduction to your scientific research paper. Refer to the APA 6th edition publication manual, chapter 2, “Manuscript Structure and Content”. Note, scientific writing does not include direct quotes (always paraphrase instead) and should not be written in first person (e.g. no “I”, “we”). The paper should address the following 4 points:

1.    A description of the health research question. It is very important that you describe the unique attributes of this research and distinguish it from other studies. The research question can be an adaptation of an existing health research question that is analyzed using a different set of data or variables. (1-2 pages)

2.    A justification as to why there is a need for this research to be performed, supported by references from peer reviewed literature and articles, web sites, and/or interviews with relevant subjects. (1-2 pages)

3.    The population of people that will be impacted by this research. (1 page)

4.    A detailed literature review using at least 4 current (within the last ten years) peer reviewed research papers and/or articles to help provide a background for this research. (2-3 pages)

Include a brief synopsis at the end of the paper that identifies which team member contributed to which part(s) of the paper.

Make sure the finalized team literature review is submitted by one team member to your assignment folder and turnitin.com.

Analysis Plan

The analysis plan is your draft of the methods section. The methods section describes how your team will describe and analyze the data. Consider which descriptive statistics should be included. What inferential statistic test will you use to solve your hypothesis? Address the following items in your analysis plan.

5.    A detailed description of the health database that you plan to use along with the variables, analyses that you intend to perform. You should list the null and alternative hypotheses when relevant in this section. You should try to obtain enough background on the database to justify its reliability and validity.  You should have several demographic or independent variables and two dependent variables identified.

?    It is highly recommended that you use the Wonder database:
?    http://wonder.cdc.gov
?    After you choose you topic in the Wonder database, click on the topic and then click on the “Request Form” tab at the top of the page.  This tab will take you to a webpage that will allow you to limit your search by factors such as age, symptoms, etc.

6.    Your analysis should include:
?    A discrete frequency distribution for each of the variables.
?    A listing of basic descriptive statistics for central tendency (mean, median, mode) and variability (standard deviation, variance, range, and interquartile) when relevant.
?    A list of the inferential statistics you intend to perform on the variables such as t- tests, ANOVA, chi-square, or Regression.  For this section you need to work directly with your faculty to choose the type of analyses you can perform on your data.  All of these statistics must be explained in detail with respect to the research you are performing.  They should be approved by your professor to make sure you are on the right track with your analyses.

Your professor will review your analysis plan to make sure you are setup to appropriately analyze the data and solve your research question.

Final Project/Paper
For the final project/paper (formatted in accordance with APA guidelines) you will pull the previous portions of the assignment together, analyze your data, report the results, discuss the findings, and draw conclusions. Note: All sections should include any updates or modifications based on team input or feedback that you received through postings or e-mail. Also one team member should submit the final paper to the assignment folder and turnitin.com.

The paper should include elements of a journal article (14 pages). These elements are: title page (1 page); abstract (1-2 paragraphs); a description of health research question, including justification for the research (1-2 pages); literature review (2-3 pages); methods section (1-2 pages); results section and exhibits (4-6 pages); discussion section (2-3 pages); conclusion section (1-2 pages); and a list of references (1-2 pages).

In addition, the key items below should be addressed or included in the final paper:

7.    Your analysis plan converted to a methods section (items 5 and 6 above). This methods section should also include a detailed description of the health database that is being used along with the variables. You should try to obtain enough background on the database to justify its reliability and validity. You should have several demographic or independent variables and two dependent variables identified.

8.    Perform your data analysis and report the results. The results section, including exhibits) should include figures, such as tables and graphs, which are relevant to your analysis. Use appropriate labeling, as shown in the APA formatting guide.

9.    The discussion section should focus on what the results mean. Did you solve your research question? Did you accept or reject your hypothesis?

10.    A conclusion section including the limitations of the research you performed, recommendations for health program/policy planning, or future research. In most research the findings usually point to additional unanswered questions that should be addressed in future studies. Do not overstate conclusions in a way that draws more from your work than what was actually found.

11.    A list of references.

TEAM ASSIGNMENT INSTRUCTIONS
Fall 2015
HIMS 650

Overview

Health care analysis is normally worked on in a team environment and should be the basis for strategic decision-making about patient care, business operations, and research. For this assignment each team will select a health oriented research question that can be analyzed using statistical procedures and an existing database.  Each team will produce a research report that may help in formulating policies and/or programs within a health organization or a state or public health agency.

One of the most important parts of this assignment, and the part that will affect the rest of your decisions as a group is the choice of a question to analyze.  It is highly advised that you choose your question at the same time that you find your raw data.  If you choose a question that has no easily accessible data, you will need to modify your question as you progress.  Therefore, finding the raw data that can be easily downloaded into an Excel spreadsheet is an important step.  Since this step is so important, it is recommended that you use the Wonder tool for the CDC database. This tool has known raw data that can be used with Excel (other databases may require you to use other programs besides Excel.  In this class, you are taught how to use Excel.)

Here is the website where you can access the Wonder tool.

http://wonder.cdc.gov

Here is the website for the Wonder Quick Start guide to help you learn how to use the Wonder tool.

http://wonder.cdc.gov/wonder/help/QuickStart.html#Request

Examples of valid questions that can drive health care policy:
1.    Does second hand cigarette smoke increase a woman’s chance of developing breast cancer in her lifetime?
2.    Does a person have an increased risk of cancer living in a certain geographic area?
3.    Do hospital admissions or discharges for a specific condition vary among states?

This assignment offers you an opportunity to exercise your creativity, both individually and as a team. This does not mean that your analysis should be based on conjecture alone. It should be based on sound quantitative and qualitative reasoning. In health care you will hear terms such as strategic decision making, business intelligence, and data-driven decision making. Qualitative and quantitative analysis underlies these decision making processes. Your conclusions should be supported with as much solid background literature as possible.  Your professor will be helping to guide you through the process of producing this report.
Instructions

Develop a health research report of 14 pages formatted in accordance with APA guidelines. There are four parts to the overall submission. These parts are listed below and a more detailed description of what should be included in each are provided below:

1.    The work plan (This includes a title page and brief description of the health research question. The database and variables that will be used in the research study. Note, this database includes the raw data that you will analyze to answer your research question. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention supply many data sets that can be accessed by the public and are applicable to this project. It is highly recommended that you use the Wonder database tool.  http://wonder.cdc.gov).
2.    The literature review
3.    The analysis plan
4.    The final project/paper, which contains the abstract, the previously submitted literature review, methods section, results section, discussion section, conclusions, and references.

Work Plan

You will need to find raw data that you will analyze to solve your research question. Keep this in mind as you develop your research question. This activity is designed to help formulate your research topic.

Literature Review

The literature review should be written as an introduction to your scientific research paper. Refer to the APA 6th edition publication manual, chapter 2, “Manuscript Structure and Content”. Note, scientific writing does not include direct quotes (always paraphrase instead) and should not be written in first person (e.g. no “I”, “we”). The paper should address the following 4 points:

1.    A description of the health research question. It is very important that you describe the unique attributes of this research and distinguish it from other studies. The research question can be an adaptation of an existing health research question that is analyzed using a different set of data or variables. (1-2 pages)

2.    A justification as to why there is a need for this research to be performed, supported by references from peer reviewed literature and articles, web sites, and/or interviews with relevant subjects. (1-2 pages)

3.    The population of people that will be impacted by this research. (1 page)

4.    A detailed literature review using at least 4 current (within the last ten years) peer reviewed research papers and/or articles to help provide a background for this research. (2-3 pages)

Include a brief synopsis at the end of the paper that identifies which team member contributed to which part(s) of the paper.

Make sure the finalized team literature review is submitted by one team member to your assignment folder and turnitin.com.

Analysis Plan

The analysis plan is your draft of the methods section. The methods section describes how your team will describe and analyze the data. Consider which descriptive statistics should be included. What inferential statistic test will you use to solve your hypothesis? Address the following items in your analysis plan.

5.    A detailed description of the health database that you plan to use along with the variables, analyses that you intend to perform. You should list the null and alternative hypotheses when relevant in this section. You should try to obtain enough background on the database to justify its reliability and validity.  You should have several demographic or independent variables and two dependent variables identified.

?    It is highly recommended that you use the Wonder database:
?    http://wonder.cdc.gov
?    After you choose you topic in the Wonder database, click on the topic and then click on the “Request Form” tab at the top of the page.  This tab will take you to a webpage that will allow you to limit your search by factors such as age, symptoms, etc.

6.    Your analysis should include:
?    A discrete frequency distribution for each of the variables.
?    A listing of basic descriptive statistics for central tendency (mean, median, mode) and variability (standard deviation, variance, range, and interquartile) when relevant.
?    A list of the inferential statistics you intend to perform on the variables such as t- tests, ANOVA, chi-square, or Regression.  For this section you need to work directly with your faculty to choose the type of analyses you can perform on your data.  All of these statistics must be explained in detail with respect to the research you are performing.  They should be approved by your professor to make sure you are on the right track with your analyses.

Your professor will review your analysis plan to make sure you are setup to appropriately analyze the data and solve your research question.

Final Project/Paper
For the final project/paper (formatted in accordance with APA guidelines) you will pull the previous portions of the assignment together, analyze your data, report the results, discuss the findings, and draw conclusions. Note: All sections should include any updates or modifications based on team input or feedback that you received through postings or e-mail. Also one team member should submit the final paper to the assignment folder and turnitin.com.

The paper should include elements of a journal article (14 pages). These elements are: title page (1 page); abstract (1-2 paragraphs); a description of health research question, including justification for the research (1-2 pages); literature review (2-3 pages); methods section (1-2 pages); results section and exhibits (4-6 pages); discussion section (2-3 pages); conclusion section (1-2 pages); and a list of references (1-2 pages).

In addition, the key items below should be addressed or included in the final paper:

7.    Your analysis plan converted to a methods section (items 5 and 6 above). This methods section should also include a detailed description of the health database that is being used along with the variables. You should try to obtain enough background on the database to justify its reliability and validity. You should have several demographic or independent variables and two dependent variables identified.

8.    Perform your data analysis and report the results. The results section, including exhibits) should include figures, such as tables and graphs, which are relevant to your analysis. Use appropriate labeling, as shown in the APA formatting guide.

9.    The discussion section should focus on what the results mean. Did you solve your research question? Did you accept or reject your hypothesis?

10.    A conclusion section including the limitations of the research you performed, recommendations for health program/policy planning, or future research. In most research the findings usually point to additional unanswered questions that should be addressed in future studies. Do not overstate conclusions in a way that draws more from your work than what was actually found.

11.    A list of references.