Participants at the Qualitative Research Workshop.Public Health Medicine Hosts Interactive Qualitative Research Workshop
The Discipline of Public Health Medicine in UKZN’s College of Health Sciences recently hosted an interactive qualitative research workshop.
Facilitated by researchers and academics from the Disciplines of Rural Health, Education, and Public Health Medicine, the workshop aimed to build qualitative research capacity among staff and students in the School of Nursing and Public Health.
Funded by the College of Health Sciences Research Office, it also aimed to raise awareness about innovative and emerging qualitative methods and help build qualitative research capacity.
The seven-day programme consisted of a variety of sessions including an introduction to qualitative research; conceptual and theoretical framework; qualitative interviews; NVIVO software; participatory research; systematic scoping review and visual methodology.
Senior lecturer in Public Health Medicine, Dr Anna Voce, opened the workshop by encouraging those in attendance to participate fully. ‘Knowledge you gain in this workshop will be useful in your current research work,’ said Voce.
Public Health Medicine lecturer, Dr Khumbulani Hlongwana, spoke on the differentiation between a conceptual framework and a theoretical framework.
Rural Health Research Psychologists, Mrs Merridy Grant and Ms Ngcwalisa Jama, presented on qualitative interviews and NVIVO software, providing relevant examples.
Grant, spoke on participatory research, examining differences in types of participatory methodology and explaining how to conduct successful participatory research.
Programme organiser and senior lecturer in Public Health Medicine, Dr Tivani Mashamba-Thompson, presented on systematic scoping reviews.
The workshop ended with a presentation on visual methodology by the Dr JL Dube Chair in Rural Education, Professor Relebohile Moletsane of the Department of Education in the College of Humanities, assisted by her PhD candidate, Ms Lisa Wiebesiek.
The duo outlined the photo-voice and participatory approach and the provision of materials needed for the exercise.
Mashamba-Thompson said: ‘Based on the positive responses from participants, the workshop was a great success.’