units

MPH2013

Faculty of Medicine, Nursing and Health Sciences

Monash University

Postgraduate - Unit

This unit entry is for students who completed this unit in 2012 only. For students planning to study the unit, please refer to the unit indexes in the the current edition of the Handbook. If you have any queries contact the managing faculty for your course or area of study.

print version

6 points, SCA Band 2, 0.125 EFTSL

Refer to the specific census and withdrawal dates for the semester(s) in which this unit is offered, or view unit timetables.

LevelPostgraduate
FacultyFaculty of Medicine, Nursing and Health Sciences
OfferedAlfred Hospital Second semester 2012 (Day)
Alfred Hospital Second semester 2012 (Off-campus)
Coordinator(s)Dr A Wluka

Synopsis

This unit provides an introduction to the research methods used in observational studies and is designed to help the student develop the practical skills required in the design and assessment of a research project. It covers issues in protocol design, including study type selection, introduction to questionnaire design, sampling methods, and ethics approval. This introduces the student to planning data management and statistical analysis and developing a study budget. An introduction to the role of qualitative research is also covered.

Outcomes

On completion of this unit the student should be able to:

  1. Pose a research question answerable by observational study methods used in public health research
  2. Design, present and assess a research protocol to answer the stated question using observational study designs
  3. Describe how information may be collected from people and transformed into usable data for scientific study
  4. Identify when qualitative methodologies may be useful
  5. Demonstrate the ability to participate in a group.

Assessment

Assignments (40%)
Examination (50%)
Participation (10%)

Chief examiner(s)

Dr Anita Wluka

Contact hours

For Option 1: 2 hours per week;
For Option 2: 15 contact hours over 2 days
OCL
Note: these options are not interchangeable midway through semester.

Prerequisites

MPH1040 and MPH1041

Co-requisites

MPH1040 and MPH1041

Prohibitions

MPH2049

Additional information on this unit is available from the faculty at:

http://www.med.monash.edu.au/epidemiology/pgrad