Other purposes for which outcome measures could be useful to you or the other stakeholders
When research is conducted, the resulting data is normally analyzed to come up with the inferences or rather the outcome measures. The outcome measures are tests carried out by investigators to determine the credibility of the treatments being tested in the research. They are majorly used to give information to the customers who in this case are the patients. In all kinds of healthcare research, the outcome measures are aimed at informing the patients of the situation at hand. For instance, they may be used to determine if a treatment initiated on a certain form of therapy works. In the case where a researcher implements an EB research several outcomes are expected including measures on how the disease could be prevented and treated among others.
The key stakeholders of any research in healthcare are the patients, medical practitioners, pharmacists, insurers, accrediting organizations, and the society in general. The outcome measures will therefore be of great help to these stakeholders as they will be able to decide on whether to depend on or ignore the inferences drawn after the research. As for the researcher outcome measures indicate as to whether the goals and objectives of the research have been attained. In other cases, outcome measures may be used to perform an economic analysis of several hearing aid options. For instance, they are used to justify economically the type of research collection tool used in terms of cost saving (Hosford-Dunn et al, 2000, p.70). In addition to this, the outcome measures may be of great importance to the healthcare facility as well as other stakeholders such as the patients, just to mention a few. Another use of outcome measures is that of making adjustments on the parameters of the hearing aid. They may also be used to counsel the patients on the information concerning their benefits. The outcome measures could be used to document the patients’ satisfaction, whereby the data collected is on the patients’ service at the facility (Hosford-Dunn et al, 2000, p.70). All the above uses of the outcome measures are dependent on the goals set during the process of conducting the research.
Common challenges to collecting accurate data in the work setting
The process of collecting data comes in handy with many challenges that could affect the outcome of research. These challenges are varied as some could arise from the collection method or the area of research. One of the biggest challenges is the environment or the setting from which the data is being collected (Bairu, 1990, p.1). The setting could not in the most suitable manner to collect the data thus being a hindrance. The other challenge is cost incurred during data collection. The process of data collection is not one of the cheapest since equipment and materials to be used are very costly. The means of reporting the data through the media is also another challenge (Bairu, 1990, p.1). This is because reporting data through media requires proper format as well proper selection of the media to be used. The interpretation of the data is also another big challenge that researchers face. Once collected, the data has to be analyzed in the right way so that the inferences made are also correct. This is because interpretation of data could either have positive or negative effects on the area or object of research. As such, interpretation of the data becomes a challenge, as it is the determining factor of the subject of research. For instance, giving wrong inferences regarding a healthcare facility could affect its success and development.
Reference List
Bairu, G. (1990). Meeting the Challenges of Data Collection. Web.
Hosford-Dunn, H. Roeser, J, and Valente, M. (2000). Audiology practice management. Thieme. Print.