Guidelines AP HCR 593
Given the complexity of the Applied Project, a sample outline is given below. Although every research project
may show different degrees of variability and divergence from the outline given below, nonetheless, it should
be used as a guide. The applied project consists of the following components:
- Title Page
- Abstract (required to be added but only in the DRAFT 2 and at the final submission).
- Chapter 1 (Introduction)
- Chapter 2 (Background & Rationale – the review of the literature that supports the purpose and aim of the project)
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Chapter 3 (Methods)
- Chapter 4 (Results; note that the deliverable of your project may have to be briefly described here and then added as an appendices to the project)
- Chapter 5 (Discussion on the results and how your project “FITS” in the literature that you reviewed in the background. Reminder, in-text citations are REQUIRED for a successful Discussion Chapter).
- Conclusion required to conclude the overall project briefly.
- References
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Appendices
Table of Contents: As you are developing your draft, you can “dummy up” your table of contents page without
page numbers for the TOC entries. It is likely that the insertion of page numbers next to the TOC entries will
be one of your last tasks before submitting the document. When you do revisions, be sure to check and correct
the TOC each time you revise, as it is likely to change.
Abstract is BEFORE the TOC
Chapter Page #
Chapter 1 (Introduction) s
Chapter 2 (Background & Rationale) t
Chapter 3 (Methods) u
Chapter 4 (Results) v
Chapter 5 (Discussion) w
Sub-section: Chapter x
References y
Appendices z
Note you can add page numbers for the images, figures, etc.. To clarify, figures, tables, images ARE required but adding them to the TOC is not.
he introduction should address the following:
- Background and need for the project–This section should focus on the background and importance of your project. A brief historical significance is generally warranted with with such topics as epidemiology, etiology, or regulatory mechanisms. This section should be a justification for your research intent.
- Definition of Terms—May be bulleted/enumerated
- Statement of Research Question/Research Objective
Important points to remember about your introduction:
The introduction should include all articles and references that pertain to the background. Any article that describes the mechanisms, causes, treatments and other aspects belongs in the introduction and not in the lit review.
Keep the introduction concise. Remember that people who are going to be reading your paper want to know that you know the information, but do not necessarily want to see every minute detail, unless it will help you answer your project’s research question.
EXAMPLE 1: Points to Consider in developing an introduction
The project is to develop a meta-analysis for the following topic: “Acupuncture shows improved thyroid function in patients with Hashimoto’s Thyroiditis.”
- What is Hashimoto’s Thyroiditis
- Epidemiology of Hashimoto’s
Susceptible populations and prevalence
Male vs. Female?
Specific ethnic populations?
- Etiology: What causes Hashimoto’s Thyroiditis
Genetic Factors
- Environmental Factors
- Infectious factors
- Pathology: Structural and functional changes in the body caused by Hashimoto’s
- Clinical Presentation: How the patient presents
- Treatments: Discuss “Briefly” Medical & Surgical interventions
In the last paragraph, state briefly how acupuncture has been helpful in similar conditions (hormone abnormality) and thus state your objective. This is basically a justification of your research.
Example
“Given the vast improvements of hormonal imbalances with acupuncture, coupled with the long term side effects of medical and surgical interventions in treating Hashimoto’s, we hope to show that through the metanalysis, acupuncture may provide an alternative treatment in normalizing thyroid hormones in Hashimoto’s Thyroiditis and improve clinical outcomes.”
EXAMPLE 2: Sample completed introduction
INTRODUCTION
Statement of the Problem
The National Healthcare organization (NHO) has been recognized all over the world as a pioneer in the delivery of high-quality rehabilitation and long-term care. The goal of the organization is to offer a complete range of extended health care services which have been designed in order to maximize the independence and well-being of patients of differ is committed to meeting the needs of patients via a multidisciplinary approach, putting into combination high-quality patient care, together with cost-effective services. As presented on the website, NHO (2009) offers services to more than 80 long-term health care facilities.
So as to be viewed as a high-quality facility, several standards when it comes to care should be measured accordingly. One of the standards points to the weight loss rate among different patients. NHO has eventually set a goal below 5% of the patients with significant weight loss in every center for every quarter, along with recent weight loss rate that is way above the so-called acceptable range. It is in the best interest of every employee to be able to reach that goal. The loss in weight may have an influence on several aspects involved in patient care including mobility, skin breakdown, and the overall amount of staff time needed for patient care. The mentioned complications may also have an impact on the facility reputation, scores and bonuses of the employee. Unnecessary weight loss or that without any intervention may also prove to be a ground for state violations, fines as well as potential expensive lawsuits from the families reporting neglect.
An Objective of the Research
Several interventions are currently being made available to the NHO staff in order to help in preventing weight loss. Still, with several medical record observations, several of these interventions seem to be highly ineffective. At the same time, there are also some interventions that are commonly used which have been debated within the medical community. By taking into account some published research in the past, and doing some in-house analysis, the data may contribute to having an enhanced policy. Identifying which interventions can prove to be highly effective can also save the staff some money and time from the administration of treatments which generally do not work, thus allowing the staff to be able to focus on intervention methods that are worthwhile.
Module 4: Troubleshooting as your prepare your paper
POINTS TO WATCH OUT FOR:
1) Do not make assumptions in your project and paper if you cannot provide a proper reference: Example: “Western Medicine has many side effects in treating Hashimoto’s and therefore TCM provides an alternative treatment modality.”
2) Personal opinions should be avoided, unless it is part of an intellectual statement based on substantiated documentation.
3) Avoid first person.
Not acceptable:
Western Medical practices have failed to treat patients with Hashimoto’s and therefore I feel TCM is an acceptable treatment modality which can replace pharmaceutical treatment.
Acceptable:
While data for the past several decades have shown that thyroid replacement remains the mainstay of treatment for Hashimoto’s (reference), it should not be regarded as the sole treatment modality. Recent evidence in Chinese Medicine has shown striking results that should be taken into consideration. This can be further evident by the recent data obtained in this study that shows TCM has a significant improvement in outcomes with Hashimoto Thyroiditis patients. This suggests that patients with Hashimoto’s Thyroiditis should also be exposed to the data regarding TCM treatments with HD and allows them to make the ultimate decision in their treatment course.
4) Try not use company websites, Wikipedia and pharmaceutical sponsored publications as references. These are often not accurate or biased in their data representation. In the case of a novel and current applied project ideas, such as remote based monitoring during Covid 19, peer-reviewed literature may not yet be available.
5) Epidemiological data such as that provided by the World Health Organization (WHO) website should only be used as background in your introduction. (20% increase in Hashimoto’s in US compared to 40% increase in Asia)
6) Avoid using “shock value” statements. Example: Pharmaceutical interventions in Hashimoto’s disease should be stopped and replaced with TCM.
7) Be wary of the words you choose to use. Scientific/research writing is different than writing in literature. Scientific/research writing should be short and concise.
8) Every word used in a scientific/research work has implications and therefore should be SCRUTINIZED.
Example:
a) Be careful when you use the word TREAT VS CURE.
b) Be careful in stating treatment vs. prevention vs. slowing of progression. Each of the aforementioned words has different clinical implications.
c) Be wary of treating a disease vs. symptomatic treatment
Module 4: Learning Materials – Literature Review 101
You have identified your project research question – now it is important to see who else may have had the same idea! The review of related literature indicates what is known about the problem or topic. It’s function is to educate the reader about the area that was studied. It is a summary of the relationships and differences among relevant reports and studies. The review should flow in such a way that the least related references are discussed first and the most related references are discussed last. This is placed right before your research question/hypothesis.
A literature review asks: What do we know – or not know – about this particular issue/ topic/ subject?
How well you answer this question depends upon:
- the effectiveness of your search for information
- the quality & reliability of the sources you choose
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your ability to synthesize the sources you select
Decide the scope of the review
The scope of the review refers to the years and amount of knowledge being managed. Depending on the scope that is going to be presented, the comprehension of the work could change. So, it is important to know and decide the approach that the author wants to give to the subject, but it can also depend on the research and topic, needing more sources to be explained or just a little more depth into the subject.
Select the correct databases for searches
The databases on a literature review will give some background into the work, also giving some improvement to the style and formatting being used. It is important to always look for databases that are related to the subject that is being talked about, with specific relation to the discipline of the review.
Start the searches into the literature
This is how the work begins; from this, the whole paper will start to have to mean, so it is important to follow some rules:
- Review the abstracts works of the discipline related to the subject being presented to save time.
- Avoid dead-end searches in databases by writing down every search being finished.
- Use bibliographies and references of the research in order to find more works on the discipline.
- Ask experts in the fields (if possible) to give advice on the discipline, or just point out the missing important works left to review.
Reviewing the literature
When reviewing the literature and research as a whole, there are some questions that would help the author to have and portray all the findings in a better and more understandable way:
Resources:
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(Part One) Youtube Video
Attachments
Module 4: Learning Materials: Literature Review – Assignment Overview
Assignment Overview
Assignment Overview
Assignment Overview
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Literature Review Includes
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Background and Rationale Chapter (Review of the Literature that supports the aim, research questions and supports the PURPOSE of the study. This is a thorough review of the literature to support the PURPOSE of the study).
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Background & Rationale – A coherent, comprehensive review of literature that is current on your topic, supporting the purpose of the study, and ends with the method you will take.
This review is a coherent review of the literature directly related to the concepts and problem under study, followed by an explanation of how your research question grows out of that review, that is, showing how you identify your own research focus in terms of “gap” in previous research. The purpose of the literature review is to know what others have discovered before conducting your own investigation and to ground your study in a particular context of what is known about a subject in order to establish a foundation for the topic (or question) being researched.
The purpose of this assignment is to facilitate your abilities to research a topic of study and learn to:
- identify and formulate an inquiry question that defines what you’d like to learn
- search for and locate literature (e.g. Journal articles) using library and internet resources
- analyze information found in educational journal articles
- synthesize new knowledge into a written literature review, and
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establish context for your inquiries
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Your literature review will help set the foundation of your project. Are there other projects like yours in the literature? If so, were they done in the past 5 years, 10 years, older? If not, is your idea novel and innovative?
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Instructions
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Conduct a review of the literature on your topic.
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Write a Literature Review on your selected capstone topic. It should be as complete of a literature review as is possible on the articles you’ve selected.
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Include journal articles and regulations you located on your topic (journal articles are required – regulations can not be used alone – we need to know how the regulations are impacting the experts or the field.
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Format your paper (Length: 5 pages minimum) in APA version 7 style. Carefully review APA V7 including reference listings.
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Steps to complete your literature review
Outline for writing your literature review:
Attachments:
Attached you will find the information planner, a sample template to help you log your articles, and more notes on about conducting literature reviews.
- Formulate an inquiry question that specifically describes what would like to know about your capstone topic (you’ve done this in you Introduction draft, but you can always refine your inquiry questions after you know more about your area through reading the literature).
- Search for and locate journal articles through the library (Links to an external site.) that are relevant to your topic.
- Review article abstracts and skim articles to determine if they correspond specifically with your aim and inquiry
- Select journal articles and download or htmf or create pdfs them for your own records
- Make notes on your research log (IMPORTANT!) AS YOU (#6)
- Read your articles and begin to sort and classify them into themes
- Organize your articles by sorting and classifying their findings in a meaningful way, always considering your original topic and inquiry question.
- Write an outline for your literature review.
- Write your review.
- Revise your review.
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Lit Review Video
Interesting video that covers how to do a lit review
Module 4: Examples of Students Literature
Reviews
Attached files:
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Please note that we have updated the Background and Rationale as well as Draft 1 TEMPLATE since these Capstones / Applied Projects were submitted. Therefore, each section may not appear precisely as your template describes. Nonetheless, you can note the level of detail in collecting the literature to support the student’s independent project’s AIM and research questions.
- Final Submission Example AP.pdf
- Note that this submission has “Background” identified before “Introduction.” Although these two sections are not identified in the order prescribed, each sections cover the introduction and background requirements well.
- Although this is focused on background sections, note, however, the excellent example of images/tables in results.
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