Message posted on 12/10/2021

CFA: Rapid research in action

Dear network members,

Please see a call for abstracts for an edited volume on rapid research belo=
w.

Thanks,

Cecilia


Call for abstracts

Rapid research in action: Lessons from the field



Rapid research and evaluation are now commonly used in a wide range of fiel=
ds to ensure study findings are provided in a timely manner. A recent revie=
w we carried out on the use of rapid ethnographies in healthcare showed a n=
otable increase in the use of rapid ethnographies in the last five years an=
d their expansion beyond the social sciences (e.g. now becoming more popula=
r in nursing and medicine) (Vindrola-Padros and Vindrola-Padros 2017). Eval=
uations of interventions in healthcare as well as other sectors have also r=
elied on rapid approaches and formative research designs to ensure findings=
can be delivered within a timeframe most useful for informing decision-mak=
ing (Vindrola-Padros et al. 2020).



Despite widespread interest in this topic, there are limited reflections on=
the daily challenges of carrying out rapid research and evaluations. This =
book seeks to address this gap by analysing the everyday experiences of des=
igning and implementing rapid studies in a wide range of sectors and global=
settings.



We are interested in chapters that can help answer the following questions:



* What are the main challenges of designing and implementing rapid stud=
ies? How are these challenges shaped by time pressures, local contexts, res=
ources of the team, etc.?
* Are there challenges that researchers/research teams are unable to ov=
ercome? Why?
* What are the common changes researchers make throughout rapid studies=
and why are these changes made?
* What are the contributions of rapid research and evaluation?
* What are some the lessons research teams have learned while designing=
and implementing rapid studies?



We will prioritise chapters that draw from empirical studies where the rese=
arch team engaged in some form of data collection (fieldwork) and those whe=
re members of the research team had different backgrounds (e.g., different =
disciplines, lived experiences, inter-agency coordination, etc.).



About the editors

Dr Cecilia Vindrola-Padros is a medical anthropologist interested in applie=
d health research and the development of rapid approaches for research. Cec=
ilia works as a Senior Research Fellow in the Department of Targeted Interv=
ention, UCL and as a Social Scientist at the NIAA Health Services Research =
Centre (HSRC), Royal College of Anaesthetists (RCoA). She works across fiv=
e interdisciplinary teams, applying anthropological theories and methods to=
study and improve healthcare delivery in the UK and abroad. Cecilia has wr=
itten extensively on the use of rapid qualitative research and currently Co=
-Directs the Rapid Research Evaluation and Appraisal Lab (RREAL) with Dr Gi=
nger Johnson. She is the past director of the Qualitative Health Research N=
etwork (QHRN) and a Fellow of the Society for Applied Anthropology (SfAA).



Dr. Ginger Johnson is a medical anthropologist who has conducted research i=
n response to emerging global public health threats in East, West, Central =
and Southern Africa, North and Southeast Asia, and in the Middle East and N=
orth Africa on behalf of the World Food Programme (WFP), United Nations Chi=
ldren=92s Fund (UNICEF), the World Health Organization (WHO), the Internati=
onal Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (IFRC), United Nati=
ons Population Fund (UNFPA), Population Services International (PSI), Unite=
d Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), the Institute of Tropical=
Medicine (ITM), and M=E9decins Sans Fronti=E8res (MSF). She was embedded i=
n West Africa with the IFRC during the 2014-2016 Ebola outbreak and has add=
itionally been involved in conducting research on subsequent public health =
emergencies of international concern such as Zika in Latin America, Ebola i=
n DRC, polio in Pakistan and the COVID-19 pandemic.Ginger currently Co-Dire=
cts RREAL with Dr Cecilia Vindrola-Padros.



Chapter abstracts

If you are interested in contributing a chapter for this edited volume, ple=
ase send an abstract (500 words max) to Cecilia Vindrola (c.vindrola@ucl.ac=
.uk) and Ginger A. Johnson (johnson.ginger@gma=
il.com) by 1 November 2021. Please include=
a list of authors and affiliations.
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