Events

Workshop on Science and Art of Research & Medical Writing

25th - 27th January 2008
Mumbai

Dr BK Nayak

Whilst the medical community is spoilt for choice when it comes to CMEs, it is a rare occurrence that they are given an insight into the world of writing. The workshop held at PD Hinduja Hospital, Mumbai, precisely did the same.

In its third year, the seminar on 'Science and Art of Research & Medical Writing', was just one of those events where doctors got a chance to understand effective ways to express their views and findings on paper. In the research world, they say that either you 'publish or perish.' Hence, this event was a perfect opportunity for all those researchers who want their work to be recognised instead of their hard work just perishing in the dustbin.

The pupils assembled under the guidance of Dr BK Nayak, Co-ordinator of the event, who helped medical researchers plan and structure their research. The workshop also emphasised on writing manuscripts, which will help them get acceptance of their research results and eliminate fears about rejection of manuscript. "It is very necessary to conduct research in a planned way, but what matters is explaining a research in a manuscript. If the manuscript fails to emphasise on research method, sampling, statistical analysis or outcome, chances of rejection become much higher," said Dr Nayak.

He also added that currently many doctors are doing research and it is very important to guide them well so that they don't find it difficult to format manuscript. To shed some more light, Dr Thomas Liesegang, MD, New York University, discussed ethical areas of concern, the importance and need for informed consent in research and gave an overall overview of the nitty-gritty in conducting a research. He had some useful suggestions up his sleeve. "Data should be appropriately analysed, but inappropriate analysis does not necessarily amount to misconduct. Fabrication and falsification of data do constitute misconduct."

When it comes to literature review, Dr Vasumathi Sriganesh, Founder, QMed Knowledge Foundation, a not-for-profit organisaiton that helps health professionals enhance their utilisation of medical information, said, "A literature review search can be classified into three types. First, searching for references on your topic, secondly to verify incorrect or incomplete references and third searching for information in 'other' areas like how to document, how to write, publish etc.”

When it comes to verifying information on the internet giant Google, she gave some practical tips like, "try with the full title of the article, if there is no retrieval try without quotes or add author or journal name if needed."

There were other speakers like Dr Jayaprakash Muliyil, Professor & Head, Community Health, CMC, Vellore,who took the audience, that mainly comprised medical students, through all the basics involved in a research like various study designs, use of qualitative research methods, sample size calculation with exercise, analytical studies (observational) cohort design and case control design. "Be it any research or any study design, freedom is the bottom-line of any research. Nobody should be allowed to dictate the terms of a research topic. Research is basically a search for truth, hence a level of reverence should be maintained. Good information is very important instead of collecting data casually," he said.

Consequently, this workshop tried to address all the unanswered questions and proved to be an effective platform for all those who wanted to hone their writing skill that is as sharp as the scalpel they hold.

EH News Bureau