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Medical research
Medical research involves research in a wide range of fields, such as biology, chemistry, pharmacology and toxicology with the goal of developing new medicines or medical procedures or improving the application of those already available. It can be viewed as encompassing preclinical research (for example, in cellular systems and animal models) and clinical research (for example, clinical trials).
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Participating in Health Research Studies
What is health research.
- Is Health Research Safe?
- Is Health Research Right for Me?
- Types of Health Research
The term "health research," sometimes also called "medical research" or "clinical research," refers to research that is done to learn more about human health. Health research also aims to find better ways to prevent and treat disease. Health research is an important way to help improve the care and treatment of people worldwide.
Have you ever wondered how certain drugs can cure or help treat illness? For instance, you might have wondered how aspirin helps reduce pain. Well, health research begins with questions that have not been answered yet such as:
"Does a certain drug improve health?"
To gain more knowledge about illness and how the human body and mind work, volunteers can help researchers answer questions about health in studies of an illness. Studies might involve testing new drugs, vaccines, surgical procedures, or medical devices in clinical trials . For this reason, health research can involve known and unknown risks. To answer questions correctly, safely, and according to the best methods, researchers have detailed plans for the research and procedures that are part of any study. These procedures are called "protocols."
An example of a research protocol includes the process for determining participation in a study. A person might meet certain conditions, called "inclusion criteria," if they have the required characteristics for a study. A study on menopause may require participants to be female. On the other hand, a person might not be able to enroll in a study if they do not meet these criteria based on "exclusion criteria." A male may not be able to enroll in a study on menopause. These criteria are part of all research protocols. Study requirements are listed in the description of the study.
A Brief History
While a few studies of disease were done using a scientific approach as far back as the 14th Century, the era of modern health research started after World War II with early studies of antibiotics. Since then, health research and clinical trials have been essential for the development of more than 1,000 Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approved drugs. These drugs help treat infections, manage long term or chronic illness, and prolong the life of patients with cancer and HIV.
Sound research demands a clear consent process. Public knowledge of the potential abuses of medical research arose after the severe misconduct of research in Germany during World War II. This resulted in rules to ensure that volunteers freely agree, or give "consent," to any study they are involved in. To give consent, one should have clear knowledge about the study process explained by study staff. Additional safeguards for volunteers were also written in the Nuremberg Code and the Declaration of Helsinki .
New rules and regulations to protect research volunteers and to eliminate ethical violations have also been put in to place after the Tuskegee trial . In this unfortunate study, African American patients with syphilis were denied known treatment so that researchers could study the history of the illness. With these added protections, health research has brought new drugs and treatments to patients worldwide. Thus, health research has found cures to many diseases and helped manage many others.
Why is Health Research Important?
The development of new medical treatments and cures would not happen without health research and the active role of research volunteers. Behind every discovery of a new medicine and treatment are thousands of people who were involved in health research. Thanks to the advances in medical care and public health, we now live on average 10 years longer than in the 1960's and 20 years longer than in the 1930's. Without research, many diseases that can now be treated would cripple people or result in early death. New drugs, new ways to treat old and new illnesses, and new ways to prevent diseases in people at risk of developing them, can only result from health research.
Before health research was a part of health care, doctors would choose medical treatments based on their best guesses, and they were often wrong. Now, health research takes the guesswork out. In fact, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) requires that all new medicines are fully tested before doctors can prescribe them. Many things that we now take for granted are the result of medical studies that have been done in the past. For instance, blood pressure pills, vaccines to prevent infectious diseases, transplant surgery, and chemotherapy are all the result of research.
Medical research often seems much like standard medical care, but it has a distinct goal. Medical care is the way that your doctors treat your illness or injury. Its only purpose is to make you feel better and you receive direct benefits. On the other hand, medical research studies are done to learn about and to improve current treatments. We all benefit from the new knowledge that is gained in the form of new drugs, vaccines, medical devices (such as pacemakers) and surgeries. However, it is crucial to know that volunteers do not always receive any direct benefits from being in a study. It is not known if the treatment or drug being studied is better, the same, or even worse than what is now used. If this was known, there would be no need for any medical studies.
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How to Write a Medical Research Paper
Last Updated: May 29, 2020 References Approved
This article was co-authored by Chris M. Matsko, MD . Dr. Chris M. Matsko is a retired physician based in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. With over 25 years of medical research experience, Dr. Matsko was awarded the Pittsburgh Cornell University Leadership Award for Excellence. He holds a BS in Nutritional Science from Cornell University and an MD from the Temple University School of Medicine in 2007. Dr. Matsko earned a Research Writing Certification from the American Medical Writers Association (AMWA) in 2016 and a Medical Writing & Editing Certification from the University of Chicago in 2017. wikiHow marks an article as reader-approved once it receives enough positive feedback. In this case, 90% of readers who voted found the article helpful, earning it our reader-approved status. This article has been viewed 191,513 times.
Writing a medical research paper is similar to writing other research papers in that you want to use reliable sources, write in a clear and organized style, and offer a strong argument for all conclusions you present. In some cases the research you discuss will be data you have actually collected to answer your research questions. Understanding proper formatting, citations, and style will help you write and informative and respected paper.
Researching Your Paper
- Pick something that really interests you to make the research more fun.
- Choose a topic that has unanswered questions and propose solutions.
- Quantitative studies consist of original research performed by the writer. These research papers will need to include sections like Hypothesis (or Research Question), Previous Findings, Method, Limitations, Results, Discussion, and Application.
- Synthesis papers review the research already published and analyze it. They find weaknesses and strengths in the research, apply it to a specific situation, and then indicate a direction for future research.
- Keep track of your sources. Write down all publication information necessary for citation: author, title of article, title of book or journal, publisher, edition, date published, volume number, issue number, page number, and anything else pertaining to your source. A program like Endnote can help you keep track of your sources.
- Take detailed notes as you read. Paraphrase information in your own words or if you copy directly from the article or book, indicate that these are direct quotes by using quotation marks to prevent plagiarism.
- Be sure to keep all of your notes with the correct source.
- Your professor and librarians can also help you find good resources.
- Keep all of your notes in a physical folder or in a digitized form on the computer.
- Start to form the basic outline of your paper using the notes you have collected.
Writing Your Paper
- Start with bullet points and then add in notes you've taken from references that support your ideas. [1] X Trustworthy Source PubMed Central Journal archive from the U.S. National Institutes of Health Go to source
- A common way to format research papers is to follow the IMRAD format. This dictates the structure of your paper in the following order: I ntroduction, M ethods, R esults, a nd D iscussion. [2] X Research source
- The outline is just the basic structure of your paper. Don't worry if you have to rearrange a few times to get it right.
- Ask others to look over your outline and get feedback on the organization.
- Know the audience you are writing for and adjust your style accordingly. [3] X Research source
- Use a standard font type and size, such as Times New Roman 12 point font.
- Double-space your paper.
- If necessary, create a cover page. Most schools require a cover page of some sort. Include your main title, running title (often a shortened version of your main title), author's name, course name, and semester.
- Break up information into sections and subsections and address one main point per section.
- Include any figures or data tables that support your main ideas.
- For a quantitative study, state the methods used to obtain results.
- Clearly state and summarize the main points of your research paper.
- Discuss how this research contributes to the field and why it is important. [4] X Research source
- Highlight potential applications of the theory if appropriate.
- Propose future directions that build upon the research you have presented. [5] X Research source
- Keep the introduction and discussion short, and spend more time explaining the methods and results. [6] X Research source
- State why the problem is important to address.
- Discuss what is currently known and what is lacking in the field.
- State the objective of your paper.
- Keep the introduction short.
- Highlight the purpose of the paper and the main conclusions.
- State why your conclusions are important.
- Be concise in your summary of the paper.
- Show that you have a solid study design and a high-quality data set.
- Abstracts are usually one paragraph and between 250 – 500 words.
- Unless otherwise directed, use the American Medical Association (AMA) style guide to properly format citations.
- Add citations at end of a sentence to indicate that you are using someone else's idea. Use these throughout your research paper as needed. They include the author's last name, year of publication, and page number.
- Compile your reference list and add it to the end of your paper.
- Use a citation program if you have access to one to simplify the process.
- Continually revise your paper to make sure it is structured in a logical way.
- Proofread your paper for spelling and grammatical errors.
- Make sure you are following the proper formatting guidelines provided for the paper.
- Have others read your paper to proofread and check for clarity. Revise as needed.
Expert Q&A Did you know you can get expert answers for this article? Unlock expert answers by supporting wikiHow
Support wikiHow by unlocking this expert answer.
- Ask your professor for help if you are stuck or confused about any part of your research paper. They are familiar with the style and structure of papers and can provide you with more resources. ⧼thumbs_response⧽ Helpful 1 Not Helpful 0
- Refer to your professor's specific guidelines. Some instructors modify parts of a research paper to better fit their assignment. Others may request supplementary details, such as a synopsis for your research project . ⧼thumbs_response⧽ Helpful 0 Not Helpful 0
- Set aside blocks of time specifically for writing each day. ⧼thumbs_response⧽ Helpful 0 Not Helpful 0
- Do not plagiarize. Plagiarism is using someone else's work, words, or ideas and presenting them as your own. It is important to cite all sources in your research paper, both through internal citations and on your reference page. ⧼thumbs_response⧽ Helpful 4 Not Helpful 2
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- ↑ http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3178846/
- ↑ http://owl.excelsior.edu/research-and-citations/outlining/outlining-imrad/
- ↑ http://china.elsevier.com/ElsevierDNN/Portals/7/How%20to%20write%20a%20world-class%20paper.pdf
- ↑ http://intqhc.oxfordjournals.org/content/16/3/191
- ↑ https://www.councilscienceeditors.org/wp-content/uploads/v23n2p039-044.pdf
- ↑ http://www.ruf.rice.edu/~bioslabs/tools/report/reportform.html#form
About This Article
To write a medical research paper, research your topic thoroughly and compile your data. Next, organize your notes and create a strong outline that breaks up the information into sections and subsections, addressing one main point per section. Write the results and discussion sections first to go over your findings, then write the introduction to state your objective and provide background information. Finally, write the abstract, which concisely summarizes the article by highlighting the main points. For tips on formatting and using citations, read on! Did this summary help you? Yes No
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Medical research involves research in a wide range of fields, such as biology, chemistry, pharmacology and toxicology with the goal of developing new medicines or medical procedures or...
The term "health research," sometimes also called "medical research" or "clinical research," refers to research that is done to learn more about human health. Health research also aims to find better ways to prevent and treat disease. Health research is an important way to help improve the care and treatment of people worldwide.
What is Clinical Research? Clinical research occurs in many formats and can involve anyone. Learn how you can participate and contribute to medical advances. This page last reviewed on September 29, 2016.
Journal List PubMed Central ® (PMC) is a free full-text archive of biomedical and life sciences journal literature at the U.S. National Institutes of Health's National Library of Medicine (NIH/NLM) About PMC Discover a digital archive of scholarly articles, spanning centuries of scientific research. User Guide
Medical research (or biomedical research ), also known as experimental medicine, encompasses a wide array of research, extending from "basic research" (also called bench science or bench research ), [1] – involving fundamental scientific principles that may apply to a preclinical understanding – to clinical research, which involves studies of …
Writing a medical research paper is similar to writing other research papers in that you want to use reliable sources, write in a clear and organized style, and offer a strong argument for all conclusions you present. In some cases the research you discuss will be data you have actually collected to answer your research questions.