Qualitative Research Study: Experiences of Patients with HIV & Type 2 Diabetes (T2D) Multi-morbidity

Task overview For this task you will be investigating a qualitative research study exploring the experiences of patients with HIV and Type 2 Diabetes (T2D) multi-morbidity in Cape Town (Republic of South Africa). Your investigation aims to use interview transcripts from this study to answer the following research question: How do patients with HIV & Type 2 Diabetes (T2D) experience health services in Cape Town, and how do they perceive their needs? Accessing the data The data you will use to investigate this qualitative study can be accessed through the Qualitative Data Repository, hosted by Syracuse University in the USA. Click the link to take you to the site (link opens in a new window). The page provides details of the study authors and background to the investigation. Scroll down the page and you'll find the list of files - you can access some of the study documentation immediately, but to access the interview transcripts you will need to Request Access, and register for a free account with the QDR. The registration process is straightforward - we recommend that you sign up using your Cardiff Met email address so that it is clear that you are accessing the repository as a registered university student. The account creation process is automated so you should get registration confirmation pretty quickly. See the guidance video for this patch for more details on the registration process. Once your account has been created, login to the repository again and access the study details. You'll see a 'read document' and 'download' options against every file. Click one of these to access the file - you'll have a final set of standard terms and conditions to agree to, and then you'll have full access to the dataset. Interview transcripts to analyse For the purposes of this case study you are going to analyse two interview transcripts: Participant P4 - 55-60 year old male Participant P6 - 50-55 year old female You will need to click onto page 2 of the file list (or change the number of files per page) in order to see these files in the list. Ensure that you are accessing the transcripts of interviews conducted with patient-participants (indicated with a P), not those conducted with healthcare workers (indicated with an H). You only need to access and analyse the transcripts shown above - you do not need to access or analyse any of the other interview transcripts for this assessment. How to approach the task Critique the methods - read the information provided about how the study was designed and conducted. Evaluate the strengths and potential weaknesses or limitations of the study design and methods used, in the context of a qualitative study. Support the points that you make with reference to relevant sources, e.g. qualitative research methods textbooks or journal articles. Access the data - see details above. Conduct a thematic analysis of the interview transcripts provided. This process is explored in detail in the qualitative research teaching materials. Some issues you may wish to consider when undertaking the thematic analysis include: Your approach to coding - are you taking a deductive approach applying codes from the theory underpinning the study (the Complex Cumulative Model - see study methods), or an inductive approach deriving codes from the data, or a combination of the two? Clear definition of your codes and themes - ensure that they are unambiguous and distinct from one another. Themes should be logically constructed from the underlying codes and data quotes. Consider visualising the final thematic structure to aid the reader in understanding your findings - e.g. in a 'code tree' or word cloud Interpret your findings - summarise the key themes that you have identified from the data, relate these to the existing literature, and explain what you have found in your own words, in the context of the original study question. Draw a conclusion: what are the implications of these findings? Recognise the subjective nature of qualitative analysis (reflexivity): to what extent has your involvement and perceptions of the topic influenced your analysis and interpretation of the data? What assumptions and biases may have influenced your research process? Advice on writing up this patch You have 1250 words for this patch. Whilst you are free to present the work in whichever way you wish, we recommend the following structure: Evaluation and critique of the qualitative methods and research processes used in the study, in the context of this research question (approx 500 words) Presentation and interpretation of your qualitative thematic analysis of the interview transcript, leading to an overall conclusion (Approx 750 words) References using the Harvard system: not included in the word count