Guide to Qualitative Research Techniques

In order to promote rational use of medicines in society, we as policy makers, regulators, health care professionals and researchers need to know more about the perspective of medicine users/patients including what patients’ motives and rationales are behind their medicine intake, and what ideas, experiences, perceptions, attitudes, etc. are built into these rationales.

Qualitative methods can be a way to gain this understanding. You will often find that patients make very rational decisions about their medicines, but make them according to other rationalities and prioritizations than those of the professionals.

Therefore, using qualitative research techniques in the attempt to promote safe and rational drug use, including finding ways to involve patients in medical decisions, is an efficient way to align the knowledge and experience of the professional world with the life world of patients.

The Guide to Qualitative Research on Patient Perspective on Medicines Use introduces different important aspects about how to prepare for qualitative interviews – step by step, from initial thoughts to dissemination.

The aspects are presented according to our experiences gained by using these methods over many years. The different presented topics can be read in a consecutive order or independently.

If in need of further advice on how to do qualitative research on patient perspective on medicines use, please contact us to inquire about existing plans of specific training seminars or the possibility to obtain individual supervision for upcoming or ongoing qualitative research studies.

We possess similar knowledge about focus group interviews, qualitative observations and document analysis.