Health Sciences Research Evaluation II (HRSS7102)

Course overview

Discipline-specific inquiry into intervention/treatment efficacy and effectiveness within Health Sciences Research, with application of information literacy.

Research is an essential component of clinical practice in the health and rehabilitation sciences. This course presents an extension to the “Consumer” and “Generator” dimensions of the HRSS “Consumer-Collaborator-Generator” Research Development model.

The course provides specific knowledge and/or skills in research principles and methods to enable clinicians-in-training to:

• Understand advanced qualitative and quantitative principles, research designs, methodologies and data analysis procedures relevant to research in the health and rehabilitation sciences.
• Critically appraise research papers using recommended procedures and/or international guidelines for qualitative and quantitative evaluation of research methods.
• Evaluate scientific literature to advance their understanding about effectiveness of intervention options and develop a research project along with its rationale, justification and potential benefits in health and rehabilitation sciences.
• Appreciate the cultural context, First Nation’s research perspectives, and ethical and practical implications of conducting research in the health professions.
• Develop skills in scientific written communication and critical evaluation of evidence.

This is an interdisciplinary course involving students from occupational therapy, speech pathology and audiology. Therefore, learning activities are presented with an interdisciplinary focus.

• Course content is divided into modules – where each module presents a different research design important in the health and rehabilitation sciences
• Each module (research design) will be presented by a teacher/professional from one of the rehabilitation disciplines involved in the course. The teacher will integrate the teachingﾠ around different research profiles of the disciplines in the school
• By working around these research profiles, students will obtain an increased awareness and understanding of the roles of various health and rehabilitation professions in using ‘evidence based practice’ (EBP) to inform their practice and improve clinical decision making.

The course builds on the HRSS Stage 2 Health Sciences Research Discovery I Course [HRSS7101], which has provided students with competencies for building knowledge and improving clinical practice using common Health Sciences Research methods. The course precedes the HRSS Stage 4 Investigation Projects, which involve either a group-based service quality improvement project (7200), or an individual Health Sciences Research Advanced Project (7300).

Course requirements

Assumed background

This course builds on the School of Health and Rehabilitation Sciences Stage 2 Health Sciences Research Discovery (HRSS7101) course, or similar course for which credit has been obtained. It is assumed that you have a general understanding about basic research designs, principles and approaches in qualitative, quantitative and mixed methods research in the health and rehabilitation sciences.

This course is compulsory for Honours students in Physiotherapy, Speech Pathology and Occupational Therapy.ﾠ

Prerequisites

You'll need to complete the following courses before enrolling in this one:

HRSS7101

Incompatible

You can't enrol in this course if you've already completed the following:

HRSS3102

Jointly taught details

This course is jointly-taught with:

• HRSS7101

HRSS7101

Course contact

Course staff

Timetable

The timetable for this course is available on the UQ Public Timetable.

Additional timetable information

A detailed timetable for HRSS7102 is provided on the HRSS7102 Blackboard Site under "Course Information".ﾠﾠﾠ

Independent learning packages

Module 1:ﾠCritical Appraisalﾠof Articles:

To complete this module, students are required to read relevant literature and write a short critical appraisal assignment. As a guide, students are advised that this will require approximately 2 hours of self-directed learning per week for 9ﾠweeks.

Modules 2-7: Evaluation of Scientific Literature:

These modules are delivered in a flexible learning format, in which students are required to: listen to online lectures, complete required reading, and/or practice critical appraisal of journal articles. There will be virtual drop-in Q&A sessions every Tuesday at 6:00pm during weeks 2-13 via Zoom. As a guide, students are advised that this will require approximately up to 3 hours of self-directed learning per week.ﾠ

Aims and outcomes

With a focus on research evaluation in the health and rehabilitation sciences, this course aims to enable students to

• critically analyse research literature in the health and rehabilitation sciences;
• understandﾠprinciples of designing research projects to address relevant research questions across a range of contexts;
• understand qualitative analysis and quantitative [advanced statistics] data analysis methods, and interpret research findings;
• appreciate the ethical and cultural considerations, First Nation’s research perspectives, and practical implications of conducting research in the health professions; and
• gain skills in scientific written communication.

In this interdisciplinary course, different research principles and methods used in the health and rehabilitation sciences will be integrated around different research activities of the School’s different disciplines.

Learning outcomes

After successfully completing this course you should be able to:

Assessment

Assessment summary

Assessment details

Quiz 1 - Multiple Choice & Answers (Modules 2 & 3)

• Online

Mode

Written

Category

Quiz

Weight

15%

Due date

23/08/2024 - 24/08/2024

The 60-minutes quiz will be available from 9:00am Fri 23 Aug 2024 until 9:00pm Sat 24 Aug 2024. 

Learning outcomes

L01, L02, L03, L04, L05, L06

Task description

Submission guidelines

Deferral or extension

You may be able to apply for an extension.

The maximum extension allowed is 14 days. Extensions are given in multiples of 24 hours.

Late submission

A penalty of 10% of the maximum possible mark will be deducted per 24 hours from time submission is due for up to 7 days. After 7 days, you will receive a mark of 0.

Quiz 2 - Multiple Choice & Answers (Modules 4 & 5)

• Online

Mode

Written

Category

Quiz

Weight

15%

Due date

20/09/2024 - 21/09/2024

The 60-minutes quiz will be available from 9:00am Fri 20 Sep 2024 until 9:00pm Sat 21 Sep 2024. 

Learning outcomes

L01, L02, L03, L04, L05, L06

Task description

Submission guidelines

Deferral or extension

You may be able to apply for an extension.

The maximum extension allowed is 14 days. Extensions are given in multiples of 24 hours.

Late submission

A penalty of 10% of the maximum possible mark will be deducted per 24 hours from time submission is due for up to 7 days. After 7 days, you will receive a mark of 0.

Critical appraisal assignment (Module 1)

• Online

Mode

Written

Category

Paper/ Report/ Annotation

Weight

50%

Due date

17/10/2024 2:00 pm

The student must submit their assignment by 2:00pm 17 Oct 2024 using the discipline-specific Turnitin portal.

Learning outcomes

L01, L02, L03, L04, L06, L07, L08

Task description

Submission guidelines

The assignment should be uploaded electronically using Turnitin through the course Blackboard site. A submission portal will be made available via Blackboard for each discipline.

Deferral or extension

You may be able to apply for an extension.

The maximum extension allowed is 14 days. Extensions are given in multiples of 24 hours.

Late submission

A penalty of 10% of the maximum possible mark will be deducted per 24 hours from time submission is due for up to 7 days. After 7 days, you will receive a mark of 0.

Quiz 3 - Multiple Choice & Answers (Modules 6 & 7)

• Online

Mode

Written

Category

Quiz

Weight

20%

Due date

25/10/2024 - 26/10/2024

The 90-minutes quiz will be available from 9:00am Fri 25 Oct 2024 until 9:00pm Sat 26 Oct 2024. 

Learning outcomes

L01, L02, L03, L04, L05, L06

Task description

Submission guidelines

Deferral or extension

You may be able to apply for an extension.

The maximum extension allowed is 14 days. Extensions are given in multiples of 24 hours.

Late submission

A penalty of 10% of the maximum possible mark will be deducted per 24 hours from time submission is due for up to 7 days. After 7 days, you will receive a mark of 0.

Course grading

Full criteria for each grade is available in the Assessment Procedure.

Additional course grading information

Final marks falling between whole percentages will be rounded to the nearest whole percentage. Tie-breaking will be conducted using the round half up method whereby half-way values are always rounded up, meaning, for example, that 89.5% and above will be rounded to 90% and 89.49% and below will be rounded down to 89%.

IMPORTANT NOTE: Students are required to submit their assignment to their correct Turnitin portal, and that their assignment will be marked according to the question that they were allocated in that assigned tutorial group.

Supplementary assessment

Supplementary assessment is available for this course.

Additional assessment information

Use of Generative AI in Assessments

All submitted assignments will go through online software check and examination by a marker. If a student is suspected to have used Generative AI to write their assignment,ﾠthey can be called upon to talk through their process and understanding, and asked to demonstrate originality of their work. A failure to demonstrate the independent creation of their submitted work may constitute a student misconduct under the Student Code of Conduct.

Resubmission/Resit of assessment items

The School of Health & Rehabilitation Sciences supports the concept of resubmission or resitting of failed assessment items in specific and defined circumstances. In this course, the Critical Appraisal Assignmentﾠis eligible for consideration of the resubmissionﾠoption if the assessment item was submittedﾠon time.

After resubmission, the maximum result is a pass mark for that assessment component. Students who are granted a resubmissionﾠfor an assessment item and do not submit byﾠthe scheduled date will not be granted any extension.ﾠ

Submitting assessment in Blackboard and Turnitin

When assessment is submitted throughﾠBlackboardﾠyou will receive a confirmation page as a digital receipt.ﾠThis information will also be sent to your student e-mail account.ﾠPlease ensure you keep this email.

When assessment is submitted throughﾠTurnitinﾠyou will receive a confirmation page displaying “Submission Complete!” and can then proceed to download your digital receiptﾠfrom yourﾠAssignment inbox.ﾠIt is suggested that you save a copy of the receipt for your personal records.

Instructions on how to submit assignments through Blackboard and Turnitin are available at:ﾠhttps://web.library.uq.edu.au/library-services/it/learnuq-blackboard-help/learnuq-assessment. Please review this information so you understand how to successfully submit your assessment items.

Late submission of assessment items

Late submission of assessment items will attract a penalty of 10% of the mark per day late or, for work graded on a 1-7 scale, a deduction of one grade per day (including weekends and public holidays), unless a formal extension has been organised prior to the due date and time.

Requests for extension of assessment due date must be made online, via your my.UQ portal on or before the submission date and time. Late applications may not be accepted. The request must also contain documentation satisfactorily supporting the request. If an extension is approved, you will be notified via your my.UQ portal and the new date for submission provided.

The School's policy and procedure for extension of assessment can be found in section 6 (policies and guidelines). Further information, including how to apply, can be found at https://my.uq.edu.au/node/218/0#0.

Learning resources

You'll need the following resources to successfully complete the course. We've indicated below if you need a personal copy of the reading materials or your own item.

Library resources

Find the required and recommended resources for this course on the UQ Library website.

Additional learning resources information

The Blackboard site for HRSS7102 will provide relevant learning resources, including lecture notes, lecture recordings, materials for ILPs, the course discussion board, and critical appraisal discussion board. All online interactions, including online quizzes, will be through theﾠBlackboard site.

Learning activities

The learning activities for this course are outlined below. Learn more about the learning outcomes that apply to this course.

Additional learning activity information

Additional 1-hr virtual drop-in session will be run on every Tuesday, starting form week 2 to week 13, at 6:00pm via Zoom. These sessions are designed to address module specific questions, in addition to elaborating some core concepts covered in the modules and discussion of completed CASP checklists. These sessions will be recorded and shared via Blackboard.  

Policies and procedures

University policies and procedures apply to all aspects of student life. As a UQ student, you must comply with University-wide and program-specific requirements, including the:

• Student Code of Conduct Policy
• Student Integrity and Misconduct Policy and Procedure
• Assessment Procedure
• Examinations Procedure
• Reasonable Adjustments - Students Policy and Procedure

Learn more about UQ policies on my.UQ and the Policy and Procedure Library.