GUIDELINESFORSPECIALPROJECTS DEPARTMENTOFGLOBALHEALTH PurposeoftheSpecialProject TheMastersSpecialProjectintheDepartmentofGlobalHealthisamajorrequirement fortheMastersinPublicHealth(MPH)degree.Thisprojectistheculminating experienceinthestudentsgraduateMPHprogram.Thepurposeofthespecialprojectis togivethestudentsanopportunitytosynthesizeandapplytheknowledgeandskills gainedintheMPHcourseworkanddemonstratetheabilitytoproduceascholarly product.Thisprojectalsoallowsstudenttheopportunitytodevelopresearchskills,as theyconductanindividualprojectonaspecificGlobalHealthrelatedtopic.Thespecial projectwilldemonstratethecriticalthinkingskillsofstudentsastheypreparetoenter theircareerinpublichealth.Thespecialprojectshouldberelevanttotheirfieldofstudy andtheirlongtermgoalsinpublichealth.

RegistrationforSpecialProjects MPHstudentsintheDepartmentofGlobalHealthshouldregisterfortheirspecialproject followingsuccessfulcompletionoftheirCapStonecourseorhavecompletedallcore coursesandatleast30hoursoftheirMPHprogram. Projectdesignshouldbegin earlierthanthisregistration,andwithconsentoftheprojectsupervisor,thestudentmay implementtheprojectconcurrentlywiththeirfieldexperienceorcompletionoffinal coursework.Eachspecialprojectmusthaveacontractformsignedbytheproject supervisor,whichspecifiesthenatureoftheprojectanddesignatesananticipated completiondate.Thiscontractformmustbesignedandsubmittedatthetimeof registrationforthespecialproject.Theprojectsupervisormustbeselected,andthe contractformmustbesubmittedtothecollegebeforeworkcanbestartedonthespecial project. AssignmentofProjectSupervisor Eachspecialprojectwillhaveaprojectsupervisor(orfirstreader)andinsomecasesa secondfacultyreader.Thestudent'sDepartmentaladvisorwillordinarilysupervisethe project.Intheeventthatthecontentareasoftheproposedprojectwouldmakeanother facultymembermoreappropriateforthisrole,alternatearrangementscanbemadewithin theDepartment(orinsomecasestheCollege).Inthosecases,itisexpectedthatthe facultyadvisorwillserveasasecondreaderandwillberesponsibleforsigningoffonthe document. Thefacultyadvisormustagreethatanotherfacultymemberwillbecomethe firstreader. Incaseswheretheadvisoristheprojectsupervisor,thesecondfaculty readermanybeselectedonthebasisofproposalconsentfromeitherwithinthe departmentor outside. ProjectTopics Thestudent'sfacultyadvisorwilldiscusswiththestudenttheprocessofgeneratinga specialprojecttopic.Itisexpected tobeatopicrelevanttothestudent'sconcentration area.Thetopicshouldbeoneinwhichthestudentcancontributetotheexistingbodyof

knowledgeaboutanissue,program,orpolicy,orconfirmexistingdatathrough replicationofearlierwork.Afteratopicareahasbeenchosen,thestudentwillselectthe facultymemberwhoismostappropriatetobeprojectsupervisor.Studentsmayselect fromawiderangeofprojecttypes.Projectsshouldpertaintooneormoreofthe10 EssentialPublicHealthServices. Someexamplesofappropriateprojectsinclude,butarenotlimitedto,thefollowing activities: Labbasedresearchrelatingtothestudentsareaofinterest,fieldexperienceor otherresearchactivity. Analysisofdatawhichrelatestothestudent'sfieldexperienceorotherresearch activity Evaluationofaprogramwhichthestudenthaschoseneitherthroughfield experienceorothercontacts Analysisofapolicyorpolicyissuerelatedtothestudent'sareaofconcentration Formativeresearchconductedaspartofaproject Pretestingandrevisionofhealthmaterials Developmentandimplementationofahealthprogram Developmentofaneducationalprogramforadefinedpopulation Evaluationofexistingprogramsanduseofthosedata todevelopanimproved program OthertopicsasappropriateanddeterminedbycontractwiththeSpecialProject Supervisor& theAdvisor EssentialServices Monitorhealth statusandidentify communityhealthproblems Diagnoseandinvestigatehealthproblemsandhealthhazardsinthe community Inform,educate,andempowerpeopleabouthealthissues Mobilizecommunitypartnershipstoidentifyandsolvehealth problems Developpoliciesandplansthatsupportindividualandcommunity healthefforts Enforcelawsandregulationsthatprotecthealthandensuresafety Linkingpeopletoneededpersonalhealthservicesandassuringthe provisionofhealthcarewhenotherwiseunavailable AssuringacompetentPublicHealthandpersonalhealthcarework force Evaluatingeffectiveness,accessibility,andqualityofpersonaland populationbasedhealthservices Researchingfornewinsightsaninnovativesolutionstohealth problems

Assessment

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10

Policy Development

Assurance

Insomecases,acriticalandextensivereviewandsynthesisoftheliterature,whichis availablesurroundinganissueofconcerntothestudent,maybeappropriateforthe specialproject.Replicationsofexistingstudiesarealsoappropriateforspecialprojectsif approvedbytheprojectsupervisor.Inallcases,awrittensummaryofthespecialproject istobepresentedinatypewritten,bounddocumenttothesupervisorandfacultyreader. Also,allstudentswillbeexpectedtobecomefamiliarwiththeliteraturesurroundingthe topicorproblemandknowledgeableaboutthemethodsselectedtocompletetheproject. Eachstudentwillalsobeexpectedtogeneraterecommendationsforpublichealth practiceorpolicyandrecommendationsforfurtherresearchinaspecifiedfieldthat emergefromthespecialproject. Thespecificcontentofthespecialprojectmustbeapprovedbythestudent'sfaculty advisorpriortoimplementationoftheproject.Awrittenproposalandaonepageabstract brieflydescribingtheideashouldbesubmittedtothestudent'sfacultyadvisorpriorto approvaloftheproject. ProjectProposal Awrittenproposalandaonepageabstractbrieflydescribingtheideashouldbe submittedtothestudent'sfacultyadvisorpriortoapprovaloftheproject.Theproposal shouldbewrittenfollowingcarefuldiscussionandplanningwiththeprojectsupervisor. Bythetimetheproposaliscompleted,fewquestionsshouldremainaboutits acceptability.Theproposalisexpectedtobethefinalopportunity forthestudentandthe projectsupervisortodecideonthescopeandnatureoftheproject.Theproposalmustbe formallyapproved,inwriting,byboththeprojectsupervisorandthesecondreader beforethestudentbeginstheproject.TheproposalwillformthebasisoftheSpecial ProjectReport.Infact,thefirsttwochaptersoftheproposal(theIntroductionandthe ReviewoftheLiterature)willbealmostidenticaltothefinalpaper.Thethirdchapter (Methodology)willbetheblueprintwhichwillbeusedtoconductthestudy.Whenthe proposaliscomplete,itwillbesubmittedtotheprojectsupervisorandsecondreader. Whentheyhaveapproveditinwritingtheprojectcanbegin.Whentheprojectis complete,itmustbepresentedintheformofaspecialprojectpaper. OutlineforSpecialProjectProposals Proposalsforresearchprojectsshouldincludethefollowingcomponents.Theseare outlinedintheorderthattheyshouldappearintheproposal. Chapter1Introduction:Statementoftheproblem,background,purpose TheIntroductionwillbethefirstchapterofyourproposalandwilltypically consistofthreesubsections(statementoftheproblem,backgroundandpurpose). Thisisyouropportunitytoeducatethereaderabouttheproblem/topiconwhich youarefocusing.Thissectionoftheproposaldelineatestheissuethatyouare studying.Thestatementshouldspecificallyidentifythequestionsbeingaddressed andshouldincludebackgroundinformationonwhythisisanimportantissueor anissueofinteresttoapublichealthresearcher.Includedinthisbackground informationmightbepolicies,legislation,programchangesorotherbodiesof informationthatcontributetoanunderstandingofthesignificanceoftheresearch.

Thepurposeof thestudyandtheobjectiveshouldbeclear.Ifitistheintentof thestudytocontributetogeneralknowledgeintheliterature,thisshouldbe specified.Theusestowhichthedatamightbeputarealsoofcriticalinterestand shouldbediscussed. Chapter2 LiteratureReview Acompleteliteraturereviewshouldbeincludedintheproposal.Thisliterature reviewwillhelptofocusthestudy,aswellastoascertainwhethersimilartypesof studieshavebeendoneandtheirresults.Thereviewshouldincludenotonlya descriptionoftheliterature,butalsoareviewoftheadequacyoftheliterature. Forexample,inreviewingatopiconemightfindthatthereareanumberof articlesaboutthetopicbutthatallofthemaretheoretical.Noempirical ordata basedorsystematicstudieshavebeenconductedtotestthetheoriesthathave beenpresented.Inothersituationsitmaybeclearthatthoughthereareafew studiesintheareaofinterest,mostmaybeimproperlyconducted.Oftenonewill findthattheconclusionsdrawnfromthedataanalysisarecontroversialoropento debate.Alltheseissuesshouldbedescribedintheliteraturereview.Theliterature reviewshouldbescientificandfrompeerreviewedjournals.Althoughimportant informationabouttrendsandpoliciesmightbefoundinpopularliteraturethis shouldbementionedintheintroductionorconclusions,notintheliterature review,unlessthearticleisspecificallyevaluatingtheimpactortrendsofpopular literature. Chapter3 ProposedMethods Thefinalsectionoftheproposalshouldincludethemethodsproposedforthe project,includingadescriptionofthepopulation,samplingprocedures,methods forcollectinginformationordata,methodsofanalysis,andlimitationsofthe researchdesign.Humansubjectsreview(IRB)approvalmayberequiredformost specialprojects.Studentsshouldconsultwiththeirfacultyadvisorabout completingtheinformationneededforIRB. PolicyAnalysisSpecialProjectProposals Proposalsforpolicyanalysisprojectsshouldincludethefollowingcomponents.These areoutlinedintheorderthattheyshouldappearintheproposal. 1. Statement(restatement)oftheproblem Whenanalyzingapolicythefirststepisarestatementoftheproblemthatthe policywasdesignedtoaddress.Itshouldincludebackgroundonthequestionat thetimethepolicywasdevelopedandshouldincludestatementsaboutwhythisis animportantissueforapublichealthresearcher.Issuesthatmightbediscussed includelegislativeintent,politicalperceptions,datasupportingproblemexistence, etc. 2. Statementofanalysiscriteriatobeusedinanalysis Thesecriteriaarethevaluesthatwillbeutilizedtoanalyzethepolicy.Theywill coverboththevaluesoftheresearcherandthevaluesofthepolicydeveloper.

Examplesincludevaluessuchasequity,liberty,fraternity,efficiency,justice, rights,suchasprivacy,self determination,etc. 3. Synthesisofinformation Thissectionwillincludetheliteraturereviewandavailabledataonthetopic, includinghistoricaldata. 4. Alternativestrategies Thealternativestrategiesarethemostrealisticpossibilitiesforpolicy implementation.Theanalystshouldselectthosestrategiesthatseemtohavebeen mostsuccessful orwhichshouldhavebeentried.Twoorthreestrategies(no more)shouldbeselectedforanalysis. 5. Criteriaforstrategychoice Thestudentwillselectthecriteriaforanalyzingthedifferentcriteria,identifying thefactorsthattheywillutilizein assessingthestrategies.Examplesincludecost, effectiveness,andpoliticalfeasibility. ProposalsforDevelopingandImplementingPrograms Proposalsfordevelopingandimplementinghealtheducationprogramsshouldincludethe followingcomponents.Theseareoutlinedintheorderthattheyshouldappearinthe proposal: 1. Statementoftheproblem,background,andpurposeThestudentneedsto clearlydelineatetheneedforthisprogram,thetargetpopulation,andthe appropriatesetting(s).Studentsshouldaskthemselveswhatgapthisprogram fillsinhealtheducation. 2. LiteraturereviewThestudentshouldhaveacompleteliteraturereviewin theproposal.Thisshouldincludeinformationpertainingtonotonlythetopic ofthehealtheducationprogram butpriorsuccessfulandunsuccessful programsthataddressedthisissue. 3. ProposedmethodsThemethodsfordevelopingtheprogramshouldbe thoroughlydescribed.Thiswillbethemajorpartoftheproposal.For example,astudentcouldfollowamodelsuchasthePRECEDE/PROCEED planningmodelindevelopingtheprogram. HumanSubjects(IRB)ApprovalandHIPAACompliance TheUSFIRBmustapproveanyprojectconsistentwithUniversityrequirements.Human subjectsreview(IRB)approvalisrequiredforany projectwheredataisbeingcollected directlyfromindividualsordatawillbeusedfromanexistingdatasource.Human subjectsreview(IRB)approvalisrequiredforSpecialProjectsinvolvingdataanalysis andisusuallynotrequiredforliteratureorsystematicreviews.AnumberofIRB approvaltypesexists,someofwhichrequireonlysubmissionofbriefinformation.More complicatedapplicationsmayrequireanappearancebeforethefullboard.Students shouldcontacttheUSFOfficeoffResearchIntegrity&Compliance(website:

http://www.research.usf.edu/cs/)toobtaintheguidelinesforreviewofstudiesinvolving humansubjects.Studentsshouldconsultwithhis/herprojectsupervisoraboutcompleting theinformationneededforIRB.IRBapprovalmustbeobtainedPRIORtodataanalysis orimplementationoftheSpecialProject.AllSpecialProjectsinvolvingdatafromhuman subjectsmustcomplywithHIPAAregulations.GuidelinesforcompliancewithHIPAA regulationscanbefoundontheUSFwebsite. SpecialProjectReport Inallcases,afinalwrittenreportfortheSpecialProjectistobepresentedina typewrittendocumenttothesupervisor. FormatofSpecialProjectReport TheSpecialProjectreportshouldbeapproximately2535typewritten,doublespaced pages.However,somefinalreportsmaybelongerorshorterthantherecommendedpage lengthdependinguponthenatureandscopeoftheproject.Thepapershouldbeprepared accordingtotheguidelinespublishedintheHandbookofGraduateThesesand Dissertations,whichisavailableintheUniversityBookstoreandontheUSFwebsite. APAstyleisthepreferredstylefortheDepartmentofGlobalHealth.Electronic submissionofthefinaldraftmustbesubmittedtotheadvisor.Atthediscretionof the advisor,thepaperwillbecheckedforplagiarism. Theconsequencesofcheatingor copyingwillnotbetoleratedatthisstageinastudentscompletionoftheMPHdegree. Thefinaldocumentshouldincludeasetofcoverpagesinthefollowingorder(see Appendixforformat):ablankpage(flypage),asignaturepage,anabstract,andatable ofcontents. Thedocumentshouldhavepagesnumberedonthebottominthecenterofthepage.The abstractislimitedto500wordsandshouldincludethefollowing:Background,Brief reviewoftheliterature,PublicHealthsignificance,Statementofpurpose,Methods, Studydesign,Researchmethodology,Results,Primaryresultsfromstudy,and Conclusion. Studentsareencouragedtodesigntheirreportinamannerwhichwillenablethemto easilycovertthereporttoapapersuitableforpublication.Thestudentsproject supervisorshallassistthestudentinmanuscriptdevelopmentincaseswhereimmediate publicationisindicated.Recommendedoutlinesforvarioustypesofspecialprojectsare givenbelow. ResearchBasedProject 1. StatementoftheProblem,BackgroundandPurpose 2. LiteratureReview 3. Methods 4. ImplementationandEvaluationorResults 5. Discussion,ConclusionsandRecommendations 6. LiteratureCited 7. TablesandFigures(ifapplicable)

8. AddendumincludingInstitutionalReviewBoard(IRB)reviewapprovalwhere needed PolicyAnalysisSpecialProjectProposal Proposalsforpolicyanalysisshouldincludethefollowingcomponents.Theseare outlinedintheordertheyshouldappearintheproposal: 1. Statement(restatement)oftheproblem.Whenanalyzingapolicythefirststep isarestatementoftheproblemthatthepolicywasdesignedtoaddress.It shouldincludebackgroundonthequestionatthetimethepolicy was developed,andshouldincludestatementsaboutwhythisisanimportantissue forapublichealthresearcher.Issueswhichmightbediscussedaresuchitems aslegislativeintent,politicalperceptions,datasupportingproblemexistence, etc. 2. Statementofanalysiscriteriatobeusedinanalysis.Thesecriteriaarethe valueswhichwillbeutilizedtoanalyzethepolicy.Theywillcoverboththe valuesoftheresearcherandthevaluesofthepolicydeveloper.Examples includevaluessuchasequity,liberty,fraternity,efficiency,justice,rights, suchaprivacy,selfdetermination,etc. 3. Synthesisofinformation thissectionwillincludetheliteraturereviewand availabledataonthetopic,includinghistoricaldata. 4. Alternativestrategiesthealternativestrategiesarethemostrealistic possibilitiesforpolicyimplementation.Theanalystshouldselectthose strategieswhichseemtohavebeenmostsuccessfulorwhichshouldhave beentried.Twoorthreestrategies(nomore)shouldbeselectedforanalysis. 5. Criteriaforstrategychoicethestudentwillselectthecriteriaforanalyzing thedifferentcriteria,identifyingthefactorswhichtheywillutilizein assessingthestrategies.Exampleinclude:cost,effectiveness,andpolitical feasibility. GradingofSpecialProjects Theprojectsupervisor,withconsultationfromthesecondfacultyreader,willapprovethe finalprojectasrepresentedinthewrittendocument.Specificlettergradeswillnotbe assigned.Ifafterreviewofthewrittendocument,theprojectsupervisorfeelsthatitis appropriateornecessary,thestudentmaybeaskedtopresenthis/herprojectinoral discussion.Theoraldiscussionincludesthestudent,theprojectsupervisor,thefaculty advisor(ifdifferent),thesecondfacultyreaderandthechairpersonofthedepartmentand anyguest. DepartmentalCriteriaforstudentsregisteringfortheSpecialProject EachMPHstudentwillregisterforthreecredithoursofSpecialProject.Thislevelof creditrecognizesthatthestudentwillinvestsignificanttimeontheirproject(i.e.,athree creditcourseisequalto135contacthours).Studentsshouldbepreparedtodocumentthe timespentontheirproject.

APPENDIXA StepstoCompletingyourSpecialProject Step 1:Discusstheprojectwithyourfacultyadvisor.Dothisearlyinyourcourseof study.Withyouradvisor,decideonatopicandonthepersonswhowillbeyourfirstand secondreaders.Youradvisorwillusuallyserveaseitherfirstorsecondreader. Step2:Asktheprofessorstoserveasyourfirstandsecondreaders,andbeginworking withthemtodevelopyourproject'soveralldesign.Registerforcreditforspecialproject workandsignacontractwithyourfirstandsecondreaders. Step3:Conductyourliteraturereview.Finalizeyourproject'spurposeandmethodof datacollection.Prepareafinalproposalforpresentationtoyouradviser.Thisproposal shouldincludethefirstthreechapters,thestatementoftheproblemwithbackgroundand purpose,thereviewoftheliterature,andyouranticipatedmethodofanalysis.Proposals shouldbeturnedinthreeweekspriortotheanticipatedstartofthestudy.Youmustallow 2weeksforreviewoftheproposalbyfacultyand1weekformodificationsand resubmittalasnecessary. Step4:Submityourstudytothehumansubject'sreviewboardforapproval,ifneeded. Besuretodiscussthiswithyouradvisor. Step5:Conductyourstudy. Step6:Writethefinalsectionsofyourreportincludingthedata,dataanalysis,andyour summary,conclusions,recommendationsandsubmitthedraftreporttoyourreadersfor theircomments/suggestions.Eachreadershouldbeallowedapproximately2weeksto reviewthedraftandmakecomments. Step7:MakecorrectionstotheSpecialProjectreportandresubmitthecorrectedreportto thefirstandsecondreaderforreviewandapproval.Thismustbedoneatleastoneweek beforetheendofthesemester(thelastFridayofclasses)priortofinalexamweek. Step7:SubmitfinalboundcopiestobothreadersandthedepartmentSecretarypriorto theendofthesemester.

SAMPLETITLE PAGE TITLE(ALLCAPS) By YOURNAMEHERE,WITHDEGREESALREADYEARNED

SPECIALPROJECT

MasterofPublicHealth Departmentof GlobalHealth CollegeofPublicHealth UniversityofSouthFlorida Tampa,Florida Month,Year

APPROVED: _____________________________________ ProjectSupervisorName&DegreesDate _____________________________ ________ SecondReaderName&DegreesDate