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A collection of articles on health research.
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A Beginner’s Guide to Building Better Explanatory Regression Models
Introduction Regression is one of the most widely used analytical tools in statistics and data science for understanding relationships between variables and explaining real-world phenomena. In health research, it plays a central role for students, junior researchers,...
Procedure for Handling Missing Data in Statistical Analysis
A problem frequently encountered by many researchers and unfortunately not well documented is how to handle missing data within a dataset to ensure optimal analysis. Indeed, after a rigorous process of field data collection, the quality of the dataset is not always...
Unveiling the Fundamentals of Implementation Science
In Cameroon, public health programs face various challenges in effectively translating research into practice, especially in resource-limited settings where funding, infrastructure, and access to care are often constrained. Implementation science provides a structured...
How to Design Effective Questionnaires: A Complete Beginner’s Guide – Part 2
In this continuation, we’ll explore how questionnaires compare to other data collection tools and wrap up with key insights to guide your next project. If you haven’t already, we recommend starting with Part 1 of this blog article, where we cover the essentials of...
How to Design Effective Questionnaires: A Complete Beginner’s Guide – Part 1
Crafting an effective questionnaire can be daunting for those just starting their research journey. If you’re a beginner and feel unsure about questionnaire design, this guide is meant for you. We provide comprehensive, concise, and informative guidance to help...
How to Develop a Research Question
1. Introduction Developing a research question can be a challenging task, especially when you are new to the field of research. You may have too many ideas, or none at all. You may feel overwhelmed by the scope, complexity, or novelty of the research methods. You may...
The P-value: A Beginner’s Guide for Medical and Public Health Researchers
If you have ever taken a course in statistics or read a scientific article, you must have come across the p-value. It is an unavoidable and very commonly used concept in research, especially in fields like medical and public health. But what exactly does it...
Understanding and Quantifying Measures of Mortality
Measures of mortality are a cornerstone in population health and public health practice. You have likely encountered discussions about measures of mortality in your epidemiology courses, whether during your schooling years or in your current studies. Whether you...
Coercion and Undue Influence in Health Research Ethics
As a researcher, it is essential to respect both your participants and colleagues during research by conducting yourself in a manner that does not influence their willingness to participate in your activities. In this blog, we will focus on two ethical concepts:...
Ensuring Patients’ Confidentiality in Medical Research in Cameroon
In the field of medical research, the protection of patient confidentiality is a key aspect of ethical practice, especially in a diverse socio-cultural setting like Cameroon. This blog post explores the concept of confidentiality, offers strategies to ensure its...
How to Conduct Your Thesis Ethically: A Guide for Health Research Students in Cameroon
In medical research, the line between ethical and unethical practice is not just a matter of moral judgment but now, more than ever, a legal imperative in Cameroon. Recent legislation governing research ethics has elevated the importance of conducting studies with the...
Archiving Medical Research Data Ethically: A Practical Guide
Picture yourself as a researcher, leading an important study, or as a participant, having just shared your personal information with a research project. The data you handle or provide isn’t just a collection of numbers and facts; it’s a mosaic of personal...
How to Create Rapport and Make a Patient Comfortable During a Research Interview
Imagine you’re a participant in a medical research study, about to share personal details about your lifestyle and health. How comfortable would you feel disclosing sensitive information like your drinking habits or sexual history? This scenario underscores the...
The fundamentals of descriptive statistics
Every form of experiment or research involves collecting some data to derive insights, which requires analysis. Statistics is that aspect of mathematics that deals with collecting, organizing, analyzing, interpreting, and presenting data. Generally, there are two main...
Preparing Informed Consent Forms for Health Research in Cameroon: A Step-by-Step Guide
Informed consent is a basic rule for doing things the right way in healthcare and research. In Cameroon, like many other countries, it signifies the process of educating a participant about the potential risks, benefits, and alternatives of a medical procedure or...
How to Secure an Ethical Clearance from the Cameroon National Ethics Committee: Steps & Best Practices
Are you planning to conduct health research in Cameroon? Will the study take place in multiple regions or in a region without a regional ethics committee? Will your study involve international collaboration and funding? If so, you’ll need to submit your research...
Navigating the Ethics Review Landscape in Cameroon: A Comprehensive Guide for Researchers
In medical and health research, ensuring study participants’ protection, safety, and well-being is paramount. So, an independent and comprehensive ethical review is necessary for research activities involving human subjects. Whether you are planning to conduct...
Practical Steps in Writing an MD Thesis
Presenting an MD thesis is mandatory in fulfilling the requirements for graduation in some medical schools. It’s all about researching and scientifically reporting your findings. This huge task is usually time-consuming, mind-blogging and exhausting at every...
4 Things You Should Consider Before Choosing a Supervisor/Mentor
Research supervisors are the people who guide you through the research process and play an essential role in your journey from novice to expert. Consider the following four aspects in choosing a supervisor for your research project. 1. QUALIFICATIONS The first is the...
APPLY: CRENC Research Studentships 2022
The CRENC is now inviting applications from MD students, Medical Residents, Masters Students and PhD students, to undertake CRENC Research Studentships 2022 with Prof. Anastase DZUDIE; MD, PhD, FESC, as principal investigator and the CRENC research group, in medical...
How to Create a Data Analysis Plan: A Detailed Guide
If a good research question equates to a story then, a roadmap will be very vital for good storytelling. We advise every student/researcher to personally write his/her data analysis plan before seeking any advice. In this blog article, we will explore how to create a...
Writing a good results section of a thesis/scientific paper
Overview A stellar results section of a thesis/scientific paper allows the reader to link the findings to the specific objectives. Also, it aids in the understanding of the scientific research’s answers to questions posed. Eventually, it integrates these contributions...
How to present Tables and Figures: An Ultimate Guide
Introduction Tables and figures are a great way to communicate your data in an easy and visually appealing way. In this article, you will learn how to present tables and figures that clearly communicate your message, based on recommendations by most Journals and...
What to expect from a good and effective mentee
To get the best out of a mentor-mentee relationship the mentee has a number of things they should keep up to. Here are some expectations of a good mentee to ensure a great relationship with your mentor. Act of Service A mentee should be able to acknowledge that a...
What to expect from an effective mentor
The term mentorship goes as far back as the 18th century, and it is simply used to describe someone who imparts wisdom to and shares knowledge with a less-experienced colleague. Over time most people have come to realize that finding a mentor is an effective way to...
Plagiarism – A Growing Threat to Originality
The Concept of Plagiarism Originality is one of the most important concepts that underpin any form of writing be it scientific or not. It is defined as “the quality or state of being novel or unusual”. In scientific research, originality is a broad term that describes...
How to Write A Great Abstract
An abstract is a concise stand-alone summary of your work which gives readers the first impression of the document and permits them to decide whether or not it suits their interests’ prior reading. It is located after the title and before the main body of the...
How to Write An Introduction Section/Chapter
Haven’t you struggled with what to include in your introduction section, or whether it should be written first or last? Here is a quick guide on how to write an introduction section or chapter. Generally, an introduction begins any piece of work. It contains the...
How to Create a Presentation – Step by Step
In the professional world, at least once in our lives, we are expected to know how to create and deliver a presentation for any number of reasons. Whether it is an academic setting or another professional setting, it is very important to know how to create and deliver...
Top 10 Tips on How to Make A Breathtaking Presentation: For Thesis Defence and Conferences
When a presentation is not well planned and rehearsed, it may become some form of “conscious sedation” for the audience. If it’s your first time doing an academic presentation, thesis defence, or a conference presentation, you are very likely to be nervous and if your...
How To Effectively Plan A Scientific Event
Whether you are planning a small event such as a research training workshop or a bigger event such as an international scientific conference, you have to plan well. The success of an event largely depends on how well it is planned. Here are seven important steps in...
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