Using Research for Effective Health Promotion, edited by Sandy Oliver and Greet Peersman

This book bridges the gap between research and practice in health promotion. It advances evidence-based health promotion by illustrating how service providers and researchers can change their working practices to benefit the public. It addresses the need for health promotion services to be grounded in empirical research, and for research to focus on issues important to those delivering as well as those receiving the services.

Using Research for Effective Health Promotion contributes to the debate about the relative values of qualitative and experimental research in health promotion, and encourages an increased participation of service users in the development and evaluation of services. It provides health promotion specialists with time-saving tools to draw upon research quickly and critically; and will be an important resource for students and professionals in fields such as public health, nursing, education, social work and voluntary services.

Contents

Notes on contributors - Preface

Part one: Theory of health promotion and evaluation - Promoting health: principles of practice and evaluation - Evaluating health promotion: methodological diversity - Learning from research

Part two: Finding and appraising research evidence - Finding research evidence: systematic searching - World Wide Web for health: how to access tools and research - Critical appraisal of research evidence: finding useful and reliable answers - Systematic reviews of effectiveness

Part three: Applying health promotion and research to young people's lives - The fine details: conducting a systematic review - Who's listening?: systematically reviewing for ethics and empowerment - A listening trial: 'qualitative' methods within experimental research

Part four: Advances in evidence-informed policy and practice - Using research: challenges in evidence-informed service planning - Making research more useful: integrating different perspectives and different methods - Looking to the future: policies and opportunities for better health - References - Index.

Contributors

Simon Forrest, Angela Harden, Amanda Nicholas, Ann Oakley, Sandy Oliver, Greet Peersman, Vicki Strange, The RIPPLE Study Team, James Thomas.

Publication

August 2001 c.176 pages, ISBN 0 335 20870 3, Paperback c. £16.99

Open University Press, Celtic Court, 22 Ballmoor, Buckingham, MK18 1XW, UK. Online ordering: http://www.openup.co.uk