Surveillance subjects and data sources

Asthma Research

The purpose of this research paper is to discuss the data collection techniques that will be the subject of the Scholar-Practitioner surveillance system. In order to accomplish this, methods will be presented as how to best explain relationships between data gathered and a formulating a precise hypothesis. This paper will describe the planned data collection systems that can best approach gaining a complete assessment on the problem.

Disease Background

I have chosen Asthma as the disease or condition to investigate for this project. Asthma is a very large subject with many ramifications to both causes and treatments. It is therefore necessary to target a specific population to best narrow the scope of the investigation. According to the Asthma and Allergy Foundation of America, (AAFA) " asthma is the most common chronic disease of childhood, and yet many parents know little about it. In the United States, it is estimated that nearly 5 million youngsters under age 18 have this disease. In 1993 alone, asthma was the reason for almost 200,000 hospital stays and about 340 deaths among persons under age 25." In essence, this disease is still very mysterious and requires continual investigations into these types of conditions.

The American Lung Association described asthma as " a reversible obstructive lung disease, caused by increased reaction of the airways to various stimuli. It is a chronic inflammatory condition with acute exacerbations. Asthma can be a life-threatening disease if not properly managed." Environmental conditions that may trigger asthmatic attacks include, respiratory infections, colds, smoke, allergic reactions, pollution and stress. Thousands of children die each year because of an asthma attack causing affliction and pain to many families across the country.

Data Collection

From my perspective, there are two ways of gaining more information about the data associated with childhood asthma. The first method is by reviewing literature that is pertinent to the topic. A cursory examination shows that have been tens of thousands of research papers dedicated to this subject. Creating a hypothesis around this information requires a significant effort into researching and organizing data pertinent to the topic. It should be noted that this is a secondary source of data. Many of these papers are very specific and attempt to isolate very specific qualities that contribute to the problem. Incorporating both qualitative and quantitative data into a coherent argument requires synthesizing these two types of data.

The more involved and labor-intensive method of acquiring data on this subject would be to conduct a research experiment myself. This would be considered primary sources of information. An advantage to this approach would be the autonomy. This autonomy comes with responsibilities and a solid data collection method requires strict adherence to scientific principles that demonstrate cautious and precise research beyond reproach.

A combination of both methods is preferable in this case. Using both empirical evidence coupled with my personal research would help explain this disease from my personal perspective and adds another voice to the discussion. In collecting my own data it is important to create a system that can defend against error and personal bias. Collecting data must be done in a systematic and predefined way to help maintain the integrity of the research. For this task, I am solely responsible.

Once this data is collected there are many things that can be done with the data. Bookkeeping and organizational skills become of the utmost importance during this step of the research product. A clear and concise collection method must be fully vetted before this data collection begins and serves as guidelines to the research itself.