HM404

1. © 2017 American Health Information Management Association
© 2017 American Health Information Management Association
Health Informatics Research Methods:
Principles and Practice, Second Edition
Chapter 15: Disseminating
Information

2. © 2017 American Health Information Management Association
Learning Objectives
• Select a format for disseminating research results consistent with
the researcher’s purpose.
• Explain the processes of poster presentations and oral
presentations.
• Determine the appropriate content for an effective oral presentation.
• Demonstrate the appropriate organization, content, and format of a
journal publication.
• Apply criteria in the review of a research article.
• Discuss the means and purpose of alternative dissemination
formats.
• Use key terms associated with disseminating information through
presentations, publications, and research project websites
appropriately.

3. © 2017 American Health Information Management Association
Dissemination
• Dissemination is the distribution of
information to a targeted audience using
planned strategies
• Dissemination of information is essential to its
accessibility, availability, and eventual use
• Purposes
– Advance field by building body of knowledge
– Advance practice
– Advance researchers’ careers

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Formats for Disseminating
Research
• Selected format should be suited to target
audience
• Potential formats
– Presentation
– Publication
– Multipronged approach

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Presentation
• Two common types
– Poster presentation
• Visual presentation of information
• Graphics and text
• Time slot to answer questions about research
project
– Oral paper presentation
• Formal oral presentation often accompanied by
visual aids

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Presentation (cont.)
• Sites: Professional meetings, conferences,
and other events
• Call for proposals
• Acceptance
– Quality of proposal
– Number of proposals
– Relevance to topic

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Presentation (cont.)
• Presenters receive valuable feedback to
improve research study
• Publications associated with presentations
– Abstracts
– Papers
– Proceedings

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Poster Presentation
• Conform to guidelines
• Poster services
– Institutional
– Commercial
– Websites
• Characteristics of
effective posters
– Visually appealing
– Readable at a distance
– Charts, tables, and other
graphics
• Key information
‒ Title
‒ Background
‒ Objectives
‒ Research design
‒ Results
‒ Conclusions
‒ Future plans

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Oral Paper Presentation
• Accepted proposals receive time slot (15 to 30 minutes)
• Time slots often include question-and-answer period
• Strictly adhere time limits
• Tips on effective presentations
– Know audience’s background
– Focus on their “take-home message
– Keep it simple
– Allow one minute per slide
– Use a logical flow that tells a story
– Practice

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Oral Paper Presentation (cont.)

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Journal Publication
• Journal publication
– Distributes results to practitioners, decision makers, and
other professionals so information can be used
– Allows examination and critical analysis by other
practitioners and other researchers
• Manuscript is unpublished paper
• Article is a published paper
• Sections
– Introduction
– Methods
– Results
– Discussion

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Abstract
• Brief summary of major parts of research
study that is written last
• Importance
– Used in bibliographic databases and electronic
search engines to index and retrieve
– Readers’ decision making
• Strict word limits 150 to 500
• Often structured formats

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Manuscript Title
• Shortest possible abstract
• Strategies to write readable and clear title
– Using key terms from major parts of manuscript
– Stating study’s objective
– Using action verbs
– Being specific
– Portraying study’s conclusions accurately and
without exaggeration

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Characteristics of Composition
• Title page
• Abstract
• Introduction
• Methods
• Results
• Discussion
• Acknowledgment
• References
• Tables
• Figures
Clear and explicit
• Introduction—Background that convinces readers of study’s need
• Methods—Step-by-step recipe to conduct research study
• Results—Neutral report
• Discussion interprets, explains, and compares results to literature; avoids
claims of primacy; recommends for practice or future research
Organization of Research Publications

15. © 2017 American Health Information Management Association
Selection of the Appropriate
Journal
• Discipline
• Match
– Practice orientation or research orientation
– Journal’s mission and scope
– Design and method
– Topics and writing style
– Researcher’s purpose
– Prestige
• Peer-reviewed
• Impact factor
• Rejection rate

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Reporting and Submission
Guidelines
• Authors required to follow journal’s
– Reporting guidelines
– Submission guidelines
– Rules for format of manuscripts
• Paying attention to details is important

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IMRAD and Other Guidelines
Reporting guidelines
• IMRAD
– Introduction
– Methods
– Results
– And
– Discussion
• EQUATOR
• Other online
guidelines
Submission
guidelines
• Explicit rules
‒ Style
‒ Other formatting
details
‒ Organizational
structure
• Implicit rules

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Peer Review
• Peer review: System in which journals’ editors and peer reviewers
work with authors to improve quality of articles
• Experts
– Critically examine documentation of a study’s design, method,
and analytical techniques
– Judge researchers’ interpretation of their data and conclusions
• Functions of peer review include ensuring
– Research’s significance to the profession
– Scientific validity (rigor and face validity; unable to detect
falsifications and lies because experts do not redo study)
– Readability of the researchers’ manuscripts
• Peer review contributes to growth of scientific knowledge

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Publication Bias
• Publication bias: Selective publication of
studies based on nature and direction of
results (also known as reporting bias)
• Researchers tend to submit and editors
publish
– Statistically significant results (nature)
– Positive (direction)
• Consequence is misleading body of
knowledge because of preponderance of
positive results

20. © 2017 American Health Information Management Association
Response to Journal’s
Feedback
• Journal editors send the peer reviewers’ decision and comments to
the author
– Turnaround time between submission of manuscript and receipt of
feedback is highly variable
– Online journals tend to have faster turnaround times than print journals
• Decisions
– Accept
– Accept with minor revisions
– Accept with major revisions
– Reject with opportunity to resubmit
– Reject
• Authors act as quickly as possible to maintain timeliness
– Turnaround “Accept with minor revisions” and “Reject, but resubmit”
– Address all comments by complying or offering clarification

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Checking Proofs before
Publication
• Authors receive galley (page) proofs that show how article will look
in print
– Electronic galley proofs
– Editors’ queries about wording, citations, and other issues
– Must respond to every query
• Authors inspect galley proofs for:
– Grammatical errors
– Typographical errors
– Errors in their address, affiliation, or credentials
– Inaccuracies in editorial changes
– Distortions of facts through editorial changes
– Errors in tables or figures
– Other inappropriate changes
• Short turnaround time

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White Paper
• White paper: Short document to inform or
persuade
– Policy paper or position statement: States or explains
an organization's policy or position on a topic
– Research report or technology paper: Presents
research or data on a product, service, or topic
– Practice brief or issue paper: Describes a problem or
issue and proposes a solution
• Length ranges between 12 pages and 25 pages

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Research Project Website
• Research project website: Webpages used to
make information about a research project
accessible
• Recommendations for websites
– Visually appealing and easy to navigate
– Organized by tabs
– Routinely updated
• Some contracts require websites and other
deliverables

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Review
• Dissemination is the distribution of information to a targeted
audience using planned strategies
• Common planned strategies include poster presentations, oral paper
presentations, journal publications, white papers, and research
project websites
• Dissemination puts information in practitioners’ hands and allows
critical examination by other researchers
• Presentations should remember the audience and focus on results
• Journals have missions, scopes and submission that authors match
when submitting manuscripts are unpublished papers; articles are
published manuscripts
• Peer review improves the quality of journal articles but cannot detect
all research misconduct
• White papers and research project websites are ways to expedite
getting research information to users