Use of post-graduate students' research in evidence informed health policies: a case study of Makerere University College of Health Sciences, Uganda

Obuku, Ekwaro A.; Sewankambo, Nelson K.; Kaawa-Mafigiri, David; Sengooba, Freddie; Karamagi, Charles; Lavis, John N.

doi:10.1186/s12961-018-0343-8

Cited by 6 publications

(4 citation statements)

References 57 publications

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“…There is hardly any evidence out there capturing views about graduate students’ research support and engagement with end users of this research, which this study has provided for the first time. Noteworthy, our earlier work documented that, indeed, findings from postgraduate students’ theses informed decision-making documents of international agencies, including WHO [ 24 , 26 ]. Taken together, it is probable that students strive to push their findings to the decision-making table via publications rather than active engagement with end users of their research.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Support mechanisms for research generation and application for postgraduate students in four universities in Uganda

Obuku

Apunyo

Mbabazi

et al. 2021

Health Res Policy Sys

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Background A large proportion of postgraduate students the world over complete a research thesis in partial fulfilment of their degree requirements. This study identified and evaluated support mechanisms for research generation and utilization for masters’ students in health institutions of higher learning in Uganda. Methods This was a self-administered cross-sectional survey using a modified self-assessment tool for research institutes (m-SATORI). Postgraduate students were randomly selected from four medical or public health Ugandan universities at Makerere, Mbarara, Nkozi and Mukono and asked to circle the most appropriate response on a Likert scale from 1, where the “situation was unfavourable and/or there was a need for an intervention”, to 5, where the “situation was good or needed no intervention”. These questions were asked under four domains: the research question; knowledge production, knowledge transfer and promoting use of evidence. Mean scores of individual questions and aggregate means under the four domains were computed and then compared to identify areas of strengths and gaps that required action. Results Most of the respondents returned their questionnaires, 185 of 258 (71.7%), and only 79 of these (42.7%) had their theses submitted for examination. The majority of the respondents were male (57.3%), married or cohabiting (58.4%), and were medical doctors (71.9%) from Makerere University (50.3%). The domain proposal development for postgraduate research project had the highest mean score of 3.53 out of the maximum 5. Three of the four domains scored below the mid-level domain score of 3, that is, the situation is neither favourable nor unfavourable. Areas requiring substantial improvements included priority-setting during research question identification, which had the lowest mean score of 2.12. This was followed by promoting use of postgraduate research products, tying at mean scores of 2.28 each. The domain knowledge transfer of postgraduate research products had an above-average mean score of 2.75. Conclusions This study reports that existing research support mechanisms for postgraduate students in Uganda encourage access to supervisors and mentors during proposal development. Postgraduate students’ engagement with research users was limited in priority-setting and knowledge transfer. Since supervisors and mentors views were not captured, future follow-on research could tackle this aspect.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Support mechanisms for research generation and application for postgraduate students in four universities in Uganda

Obuku

Apunyo

Mbabazi

et al. 2021

Health Res Policy Sys

Self Cite

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

“…There is hardly any evidence out there capturing views about graduate students research support and engagement with end users of this research, which this study has provided for the rst time. Noteworthy, our earlier work documented that indeed ndings from postgraduate students theses informed decision-making documents of international agencies including the World Health Organization (Obuku et al, 2018, Obuku et al, 2017. Taken together, it probable that students strive to push their ndings to the decision making table via publications rather than active engagement with end users of their research.…”

Section: Findings In Relation To Other Studiesmentioning

confidence: 93%

Support Mechanisms for Research Generation and Application for Post–Graduate Students in Four Universities in Uganda

OBUKU

Apunyo

Mbabazi

et al. 2021

Preprint

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BackgroundPost–graduate students world over complete a research thesis in partial fulfillment of their degree requirements. This study identified and evaluated support mechanisms for research generation and utilization for masters’ students in health institutions of higher learning in Uganda. MethodsA self administered cross–sectional survey using a modified Self Assessment Tool for Research Institutions (SATORI). Post–graduate students were requested to encircle the most appropriate response in a Likert scale from 1 where the ‘situation was unfavorable and/or there was a need for an intervention’; to 5 where the ‘situation was good or needed no intervention’. These questions were asked under four domains: the ‘research question’; ‘knowledge production’; ‘knowledge transfer’ and ‘promoting use of evidence’. Mean scores of individual questions and aggregate means under the four domains were computed; and then compared to identify areas of strengths and gaps that required action.ResultsMost of the respondents returned their questionnaires, 185 of 258 (71.7%) and only 79 (42.7%) had their theses submitted for examination. Three of the four domains scored below the mid–level domain score of 3, that is “the situation is neither favorable nor unfavorable”, table 2. Specifically, the domain of “Proposal development for post-graduate research project” had the highest mean score of 3.53 out of the maximum 5. Areas requiring substantial improvements were, priority setting during “Research question identification”, which had the least mean score of 2.12. This was followed by “promoting use of post–graduate research products”, tying at 2.28 mean scores each. The domain, “Knowledge transfer of post-graduate research products”, had an above average mean score that is 2.75.ConclusionsThis study reports that existing research support mechanisms for post–graduate students in Uganda encourage access to supervisors and mentors. Secondly, post–graduate students engagement with research users was limited, as was awareness of intellectual property rights. Views of supervisors and mentors were not captured, a subject for future research.

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“…Makerere University (Mak), Mbarara University of Science and Technology (MUST) and Gulu University (GU) offer training in courses that are relevant to EID research, surveillance and control; however, few students matriculate at graduate-level and even fewer develop into independent researchers who can signi cantly contribute to Uganda's efforts to prevent and respond to EIDs [ 13 , 14,15] . This is largely due to a number of structural barriers, limited access to funding, lack of training and mentorship approaches and programs that are abreast with Uganda's context-speci c health needs and latest advances in science and technology [ 16 , 17 , 18 , 19 , 20 ].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Training Needs for Emerging Infectious Diseases Research, Surveillance and Control in High-Risk and Resource-Constrained Settings: Findings and Recommendations for Uganda

Asingura

Kiweewa²,

Kaawa-Mafigiri

et al. 2022

Preprint

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Background Uganda is prone to Emerging Infectious Diseases (EIDs) which can cause serious epidemics and pandemics. Uganda’s capacity for EID research, surveillance and control is improving but still low partly due to inadequate highly knowledgeable and skilled human and animal health workers. To inform the design of training programs that can address Uganda’s health workforce capacity gaps, we conducted a training needs assessment. Methods A qualitative study involving a desk review, 25 key informant interviews and a 1-day consultative workshop to review study findings. Results The majority of infectious disease research, surveillance and control in Uganda focuses on HIV/AIDS, Tuberculosis, Malaria and viral hemorrhagic fevers e.g., Ebola and Marburg. Health workforce capacity for surveillance and control is robust compared to many other resource-constrained settings but research capacity and output are relatively low, especially for EIDs. Public and private tertiary institutions in Uganda predominantly offer training in primary health care and population studies through problem-based learning, community-based education and services, and Blended Learning (BL). There are several training programs in advanced clinical and epidemiological sciences, but few opportunities in biomedical sciences (e.g. virology, immunology, bioinformatics and predictive modeling), social sciences, One Health and leadership. To address the gaps, the following interventions were recommended: 1) advanced graduate and/or post-graduate training in basic biomedical sciences; 2) short-term training for continuous knowledge and skills development in multidisciplinary/One Health approaches; and 3) pedagogy and mentorship through BL, networking and experiential training programs that effectively leverage North-South collaborations. Training and mentorship should be achieved by (a) conducting most of the in-person didactic and experiential training at Southern tertiary and research institutions, (b) utilizing electronic-learning for didactic training and mentor-mentee interactions with subject-matter experts at Northern institutions, and (c) well-orchestrated placements at Northern institutions for hands-on experience using the latest advances in science and technology. Conclusion Inadequate health workforce capacity for EID research was identified as a priority gap that requires long and short-term multidisciplinary training interventions. Efficiently leveraging North-South collaborations for e-learning, short-term placements and mentorship will enable Uganda to remain abreast with latest advances in science and technology for EID research, surveillance and control.

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Use of post-graduate students' research in evidence informed health policies: a case study of Makerere University College of Health Sciences, Uganda

Cited by 6 publications

References 57 publications

Support mechanisms for research generation and application for postgraduate students in four universities in Uganda

Support mechanisms for research generation and application for postgraduate students in four universities in Uganda

Support Mechanisms for Research Generation and Application for Post–Graduate Students in Four Universities in Uganda

Training Needs for Emerging Infectious Diseases Research, Surveillance and Control in High-Risk and Resource-Constrained Settings: Findings and Recommendations for Uganda

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