• Recent

• News Archive

• Newsletters

Page: 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | Index

Research Project at San Marcos University in Lima, Peru

By Dr. Robert O. Cooley

Facilitators

Dr. Robert O. Cooley was the chief facilitator. He presented the seminar material, led the discussions, facilitated the workshops, and performed analysis of the results. He and Sister Cooley also visited potential research project sites (a pediatric health clinic and elementary schools) and, in a private session, discussed the research potential concerning various oral health problems of children living in urban and rural areas of Peru.

Elder (Dr.) Fredrick and Sister Alma Meyers facilitated the organization of the conference, provided valuable local background information, helped with translation of materials, and, for Dr. Cooley, facilitated important interaction with the university faculty outside of the conference and generally made the conference functional.

Results

The results of seminars, workshops, and discussions were overwhelmingly positive. Whereas projected participation had been anticipated to include perhaps 30 to 40 people, there were not enough translation headsets for approximately 125 participants on Friday, and 97 returned for the sessions on Saturday. On Friday, the initial presentation provided an introduction to research, the importance of research in providing scientific health care for children, and the relationship between research, education (evidence-based learning), and clinical practice (evidence-based therapy). During the second session that morning and early afternoon, research methods were presented. Following the formal presentations, there was a discussion concerning potential research investigations for children in Peru.

In the afternoon, participants were divided into five sections. Each section was provided with a topic, and their task was to develop a research proposal for that topic. Dr. Cooley visited the workshop sessions to answer questions; help them focus on specific, pertinent problems; and challenge them to eliminate bias by developing appropriate controls. At the conclusion of the workshop period, each section developed a written project proposal and presented it to Dr. Cooley for evaluation. That night, Elder and Sister Meyers translated the proposals into English. Dr. Cooley then wrote a critique of each project proposal to use the following day.

On Saturday morning Dr. Cooley continued with a seminar on statistical analysis as a method to analyze the meaning or significance of the data accumulated in the investigation. Following a question-and-answer period, the last seminar was presented on "Writing a Research Manuscript." The objective of this seminar was to help the doctors and graduate students understand the appropriate methods and language skills used in the preparation of a manuscript for submission to a scientific journal.

During the last session, each workshop group presented their research proposal. At the end of each presentation, Dr. Cooley gave a critique of the proposal and suggestions for improvement. This afforded an opportunity for a lively, interactive discussion. Individual presentations and critiques concluded with a question-and-answer and explanation period.

On Monday morning, several members of the faculty met with Dr. Cooley at the satellite health clinic. We toured the facilities and observed some of the physical improvements provided by the Academy of LDS Dentists. Considerable improvement was evident and, from a research point of view, encouraging. We spent several hours with the faculty. It was discovered that they were not only providing oral health services for children, but they had formed a community health group and were intensely interested in performing better quality research parallels to their clinical activities.

From the community clinic, we returned to San Marcos University and spent some time discussing the effect of the seminars with other faculty. There seemed to be a great enthusiasm following the seminars and workshops. Considerable interest in conducting research was evident.

On Tuesday morning, we visited the elementary school (grades 1-6) that serves the poverty-stricken area near the same community clinic which was visited. We talked with members of the administration and several of the teachers. We also had a chance to visit the classroom and see some of the students. There are many oral health problems, plus other health problems related to their environment. Many of the children had strange rashes on their hands and arms. We found out that after school children sort through the garbage for recyclable materials they can sell in order to help their families. This would be a prime group for scientific study. Some of the children were members of the Church. They identified themselves to us following observation of the name tag worn by Sister Meyers. After our school visit, we went to the offices of the minister of health for Peru. The director had been in our Friday session and invited us to come to his office to permit him to outline the current health status of children in Peru.

Page: 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | Index