Course List

This course introduces students to the theoretical and methodological foundations of health research, a field currently characterized by the paradigms of the biomedical, public health, and social sciences.  Topics covered in the course include:  the logic of scientific inference, theorizing and empiricism in scientific knowledge, ontological and epistemological foundations of common health research methodologies, theories of scientific progress, and the role of values, ideology, and technology in science.  

Prerequisites:  permission of instructor

Basic statistical concepts and techniques as they apply to analysis and presentation of data in biostatistical and epidemiology practice. The course covers: graphical presentation of data, elementary probability, descriptive statistics, probability distributions, and introduces hypothesis testing using parametric and non-parametric methods. Specific techniques covered include z-tests, t-tests, ANOVA, contingency tables, regression and correlation.

Prerequisites:  Not required for HRM students, otherwise, permission of instructor

This course is designed to allow students to either tailor their learning to the specific topics in clinical or health care, health policy and research methodology relevant to their clinical or health care and research interests and do advanced work in this area. The topic studied may be synergistic with the students thesis topic but must not represent a major overlap with it. Under the guidance of a faculty member, the student will critically examine the pertinent literature. Only one of HRM *722 or HRM *705 can be counted towards the minimum course requirements of the HRM program at the MSc and at the PhD levels.  A copy of the application form follows at the end of this section.

Prerequisites:  HRM *721 and one of HRM *730 or HRM *751; enrolment in the HRM
Graduate Program.

This course examines the application of economic principles to policy-relevant questions in the area of health and health-care. Topics will include applied health economics, economic correlates to health, demand and supply of healthcare and insurance, healthcare system financing, economic evaluation in the pharmaceutical/medical devices industries, costing methodologies, cost-effectiveness and cost-benefit analyses, QALYs, decision analysis, modeling and means by which to improve value-for-money in the the health sector.

Prerequisites: HSM stream of MBA, or permisson of instructor. Antirequisite: HRM *789

This course will expose students to principles of quality improvement (QI). It allows them to gain experience in using QI tools, develop an appreciation of the role that people management and teams play in QI, become proficient in conducting QI studies in the Health Care arena and become familiar with the QI literature applied to Health Care. Students will become familiar with the principal software for statistical QI methods and learn the principles of reduction of variation, robustifying processes and resisting human error. This course is evaluated on a pass/fail basis

Prerequisites: HRM *702 (or equivalent) or permission of instructor.

This course considers the design and content of longitudinal health surveys and national and provincial health databases. It provides students with skills in exploratory analysis of longitudinal data, discusses the use of dynamic/transitional models, examines attrition and selection issues, and considers approaches to the analysis of models for categorical and count data.

Prerequisites: HRM *702 and HRM *723 and HRM *751 or permission of the instructor.

 The course will cover the basic concepts in formulating a research question, literature reviews, study designs, selection of study populations, choice of measuring instruments, research ethics and knowledge translation. The course will provide students the opportunity to develop a research question and determine the appropriate research methods. Research designs that will be discussed include randomized clinical trials, cohort and case-control designs, qualitative methods, health technology assessment and the evaluation of diagnostic test properties.

Prerequisites: Enrolment in HRM, eHealth or PhD in Health Policy programs, or permission of instructor.

Antirequisite: HRM 771

This special topics course will present leading edge thinking regarding controversies in health, health care, and population health research. Only one of HRM *705 or HRM *722 can be counted towards the minimum course requirements of the HRM program at the MSc and at the PhD levels. Students taking this course cannot also receive credit for any subsequent regular course offering on the same topic.

Prerequisites: HRM *721 and one of HRM *730 or HRM *751; permission of course instructor.

This is a second level course in statistical methods, concentrating on regression models of various types. Topics covered include various main techniques of simple and multiple linear regression, and techniques such as use of dummy variables, covariance adjustment, residual analysis and assessment of model fit. A similar agenda is followed for logistic regression, appropriate for binary outcome variables. We also consider some advanced topics and related methods.

Prerequisites: HRM *702 or permission of instructor

This tutorial-based course will cover a broad range of eHealth topics from the perspective of health care delivery. Topics include a definition of eHealth; health care data; hospital and primary care information systems (i.e. electronic health records [EHR] systems); specialty components of an EHR system; how health professionals use data; human/cognitive factors in development and implementation of eHealth applications; standards, vocabulary and nomenclatures and how used; aggregation of health information, especially for research purposes, patient information systems and consumer eHealth; research and evaluation of eHealth applications and research using eHealth applications; implementation issues and privacy, security, and confidentiality; and the future of eHealth.

Prerequisites: 1-day orientation to the Canadian Health Care System for students (non-health
background).

This is an overview course aimed to introduce graduate students to the science and practice of knowledge translation and exchange (KT).   This course will be of interest to graduate students who wish to pursue an academic career in the field of KT, students whose primary research is in another domain but wish to strengthen their KT-related skills, and students who are interested in doing KT as part of their professional activities.   This course is part of the Health Services Research field of the HRM graduate program.

Prerequisites: HRM *721/*771 or permission of instructor

Principles of subjective assessment in topic areas ranging from educational evaluation to patient-based measurement of  health attitudes or health status. Discussion includes: principles and methods of constructing rating scales and approaches to assessing the measurement properties of such scales. Special emphasis on assesment of reliability and validity -- various forms of reliability (test-re-test, interobserver, split-halves), distinction between reliability and agreement, and indirect methods to assess validity of an instrument in the absence of a "gold standard". Advanced topics in generalizability theory will be introduced. Format is that of lecture, plus small group discussion.

Prerequisites: HRM *702, or equivalent intro stats course, or permission of the instructor

Genetic epidemiology overlaps with molecular epidemiology. It is the epidemiological evaluation of the role of inherited causes of disease in families and in populations; it aims to detect the inheritance pattern of a particular disease, localize the gene, and find a marker associated with disease susceptibility. Gene-gene and gene-environment interactions are also studied in genetic epidemiology of a disease. Genetic epidemiology is “a science which deals with the etiology, distribution, and control of disease in groups of relatives and with inherited causes of disease in populations” (Morton NE, 1982).

Prerequisites: HRM *702 (or equivalent)

This course provides an overview of the Canadian health care system by examining its origins, institutional structures (i.e., governance, financing and service delivery), key elements (e.g., allopathic, physician and hospital centre), and reform challenges. Our analysis of the Canadian system is comparative, drawing on relevant evidence about the US, UK and Australian health systems. The course has two parts. In the first half, we review the evolution and structure of the Canadian, US, UK and Australian health systems. The second half of the course reviews a series of key health reform challenges in Canada from a comparative perspective: reform in the financing of health care, reform in the delivery of primary care, reform in the delivery of home and aged care, and reform in the coverage of pharmaceuticals.

Prerequisites:  None (course is intended for MSc students in the HRM program and other
programs)

This course will introduce students to the main elements of clinical trial design, execution and analysis. At the end of this course, students should have a firm grasp of clinical trial methodology at a level that would allow them to prepare successful grant applications.

Prerequisites:  HRM *721 (or equivalent)

Antirequisite: HRM 772

The course focuses on some advanced statistical techniques for the analysis of health studies that have continuous outcomes. Although these techniques are useful for many kinds of research, students interested in observational, repeated-measures, and longitudinal studies will find them especially helpful. The goal of the course is to give students the tools to develop multivariable linear models of health outcomes. The curriculum is divided into 3 modules: (1) fundamental topics in linear regression, (2) multilevel models and growth curve analysis for clustered and longitudinal data and (3) structural equation modeling with latent variables. We take a conceptual, rather than mathematical, approach using a combination of lectures with problem-based discussion. Assignments emphasize computer analysis and interpretation of real data.

Prerequisites: HRM *702 or permission of the instructor.

This course will consider important statistical issues relating to the design, analysis and interpretation of randomized clinical trials. Specific topics will include issues in sample size determination, large simple trials, factorial designs, cluster randomization, cross-over trials, missing data in RCTs, meta-analysis, non-inferiority trials, subgroup analysis, composite outcomes in RCTs, stopping rules, cost-effectiveness analysis, statistical analysis of cost-effectiveness data, and repeated measures in RCTs.

Prerequisites: HRM *702 and HRM *730 or permission of instructor.

Models and methods for research and policy on environment and human health relationships.

Prerequisites: Permission of instructor.

This course is a practical "How To" course in techniques for economic evaluation of health care programmes. The methodology of cost-benefit analysis, cost-effectiveness analysis, cost-minimization analysis and health status index models is examined in detail and several applications of each are reviewed during the first half of the course. During the second half of the course, each student is expected to complete an economic evaluation of a specific health care programme or intervention.

Prerequisites:  None.

This course introduces students to the interdisciplinary field of health policy analysis, providing the concepts and tools needed to be able to critically appraise and conduct policy analyses at a variety of policy levels (e.g., clinical, administrative/managerial or public policy). Students learn how to analyze the relative roles played by different actors in the health system and explore the independent and combined influence of three major determinants of health policy: ideas, interests and institutional structures. Each week a different analytic concept is presented, discussed and applied to a particular problem or case study.

Prerequisites: permission of instructor.

This course provides an overview of the strategies needed for effective biostatistical collaboration with clinical investigators. Topics covered include: strategies of eliciting information required to assist with study design from clinical collaborators; ways to translate the research questions into statistical questions; strategies to facilitate provision of statistical support on design, sampling and analytic plans; approaches of communicating the sampling plan, experimental design, statistical analysis to collaborators; methods to facilitate provision of support on statistical programming; strategies to facilitate provision of help with write-up of methods and reporting of results of studies.

Prerequisites: Registered in PhD HRM with Specialization in Biostatistics, or permission of instructor.

This is an advanced course in methods for Health Technology Assessment (HTA). It is a combined theoretical and practical ‘hands-on’ course that teaches students the essential components of contemporary HTA.  Students will be exposed to national and international HTA agencies and government decision making bodies, and their HTA guidelines and requirements. The course covers areas of systematic literature reviews, economic evaluation, analyses of uncertainty, value of information analyses, Bayesian decision analyses, quality assurance in economic appraisal, budget impact analysis, and knowledge translation. There is a heavy emphasis in this course on ‘hands-on’ learning-by-doing with computer application of ‘real world’ practical examples to cement student learning.

Prerequisites:HRM *741 and HRM *737

Health Technology Assessment (HTA) has the tremendous potential to transform the delivery of health care services, and improve health outcomes and quality of life. Decisions about whether to purchase and use new health technologies should be based on high-quality evidence of its impact on health outcomes, the health care system, and cost-effectiveness.  Payers of health care face the challenge of aligning decision making with the best available evidence. Upon completion of this course, students will be equipped with the skills to evaluate the quality of an HTA, to critically appraise it to make a judgment about a study’s methods, results and conclusions.  Additionally, students will be become adept in conducting HTAs and be mindful of the barriers to, and facilitators of, evidence-based decision making in the real world.

Prerequisites:HRM *721 or permission from the instructor

This course is designed to prepare students to think creatively and proactively about ethical and legal issues in the design, conduct, analysis, and dissemination of research. Topics are divided into two categories: 1. ethical treatment of research participants and; 2. research integrity. Sessions will involve case discussion and critical analysis of ethical issues and the relevant principles, guidelines and laws. Exercises will coach students through mock-submission to a Research Ethics Board and provide insight of how REBs function.

Prerequisites: HRM *721

This course about research synthesis focuses on comparisons between alternative interventions.  Rigorous review methods will be highlighted, such as searching for potentially relevant articles, selecting primary articles using explicit, reproducible criteria, appraisal of study architechture, quantitative data synthesis and interpretation. Old and new concepts and controversies in review methods will be highlighted. The work of the Cochrane Collaboration and in particular the Cochrane handbook, forms the underpinning of much of the material.

Prerequisites:Permission of instructor (HRM *721, HRM *702 and one-page outline of the topic).

Among the concerns expressed in the past by students taking 743 were the following: 
  -  the course, which focuses on systematic reviews of therapy including quantitative pooled estimates, did not meet their particular needs (if they were doing some sort of other review, and the course moved too fast, and they fell behind in their review 

To remedy these issues, we now insist that students decide on the topic of their review at the time of registration and submit a one page outline. A course co-ordinator will review this outline and provide feedback to the student. Students may, on discussion, decide that the course is not well suited to their topic and they may decide not to participate (this has already happened). 

 In addition, we require specification of a partner for the review. This can be anyone inside or outside the course, with sufficient interest and background. This person must be ready to undertake duplicate assessment of eligibility and validity.  Given past feedback, you are unlikely to get what you are hoping for from the course without an appropriate topic and without being ready hit the ground running when the course starts.  The requirements are designed to ensure you have the optimal experience in the course.

Antirequisite: HRM 773

This course introduces learners to theoretical traditions and corresponding methods of qualitative research using health and health care research as examples. Specific topics covered include: key paradigms underlying  qualitative research, types of research questions best answered by qualitative methods, The role of theory in qualitative research, sampling objectives and procedures, methods of data collection, methods of analysis and interpretation, and ethical issues and responsibilities of qualitative researchers. Criteria for evaluating qualitative research will be discussed and applied to specific research studies. Learners will gain "hands on" experience using qualitative methods through in-class and take-home exercises.

Prerequisites: HRM *721 or Permission of instructor (HRM students).

This course provides an overview of core concepts and methods in population and public health. We will discuss the concept of population health and explore the methods used to define, measure, and investigate health outcome and health determinants at a population level. The applications of this approach to public health will be discussed.

Prerequisites: HRM* 721, HRM *751 and one half-credit graduate course in statistics

The intention of the course is both to introduce students to Bayesian ideas and to equip them to design, analyse and interpret clinical studies from a Bayesian perspective. Instruction will consist of both seminars and computer labs using WinBUGS. WinBUGS is not “point-and-click” software, so students will need to write short sections of code. Examples will be provided, and an instructor will be present in the lab sessions to provide advice.

Prerequisites: HRM *702, HRM *723, or by permission of instructor

The course is designed to introduce students to the basic concepts and methods used in observational (non-experimental) studies to conduct needs assessments (e.g., prevalence of disease or order), to understand the determinants of health (e.g., association between independent/exposure variables and dependent/outcome variables in analytic research) and to assess the impact of interventions implemented to improve health or alter life quality (e.g., program evaluations). The topics will focus on three broad areas: i) the formulation of research questions and use of theory to explicate the relationships among key variables; ii) study design options, sampling,  measurement and analysis, and iii) the control of error.

Prerequisites: HRM *721 or permission of instructor required

This intermediate-level course builds on prior knowledge about qualitative research approaches and their philosophical basis. The emphasis in this course will be on how the approaches affect data analysis and interpretation, as well as presenting findings in written and oral formats. The course is based on active involvement of learners through student-directed discussions and hands-on experiences, guidance and facilitation by graduate faculty with expertise in qualitative research, and interdisciplinary collaboration with faculty and classmates.

Prerequisites: HRM/NUR *745 (or its equivalent)

This course will cover the main statistical issues in survival analysis. Specific topics of the course are Kaplan-Meier curves, log-rank test, Cox Proportional Hazard Model, Stratified and Extended Cox Model, Parametric Survival Models, Recurrent Events, Competing Risks, and Model Evaluation. Depending on time and the students’ progress and interests, new advancements in survival analysis will be discussed.

Prerequisites: HRM *723 or HRM *731 or by permission of instructor.  N.B. HRM *721 is recommended

This course will introduce students to the major concepts and methods involved in program evaluation and examine different methodologists’ approaches to evaluation. A framework for thinking about evaluation theory will be developed that allows students to explore how different theorists attempt to tackle fundamental problems in the field. A wide range of quantitative and qualitative design options will be discussed. The course will provide students with knowledge of the current controversies and major challenges facing this field.

Prerequisites:  HRM *721 and HRM *730 or HRM *751, permission of the instructor

This course introduces students to the major concepts and issues involved in mixed methods approaches to tackle important questions in the field of health services and policy. LearnLink is used as the mode of instruction as well as two classroom sessions at McMaster. A framework for thinking about mixed methods will be developed that provides guidance to decision-making about when and how to use mixed methods and models to study health services and policy problems. The course will provide students with knowledge of the current controversies and major challenges in the use of mixed methods and models of research. Students are expected to design a mixed method study as part of the course and critically evaluate the design options chosen by a classmate.

Prerequisites: HRM *721, HRM/NUR  *745 (or equivalents) or permission of instructor

This online course covers the major components of health research activities, including concepts of health, formulation of research questions, literature reviews, study designs, selection of study populations, choice of measuring instruments, and study interpretation issues such as determination of causality and the effectiveness
of clinical and community interventions.

Prerequisites: Permission of Distance Education Coordinator
Antirequisite: HRM *721

This online course introduces students to the main elements of clinical trial design, execution and analysis. It gives students a firm grasp of clinical trial methodology at a level that allows them to prepare successful grant applications.

Prerequisites: Permission of Distance Education Coordinator and HRM *721/*771 (or equivalent)
Antirequisite: HRM *730

This online course about research synthesis focuses on comparisons between alternative interventions. Rigorous review methods will be highlighted, such as searching for potentially relevant articles, selecting primary articles using explicit, reproducible criteria, appraisal of study architecture, quantitative data synthesis and
interpretation. Students enrolling in the course must first identify a suitable research question and identify a partner for their systematic review. The course is structured around the steps of executing a systematic review and students will apply the knowledge they gain on an ongoing basis to complete their review by the end of the
course.

Prerequisites: Permission of Distance Education Coordinator, HRM *721/*771, HRM *702 and a one-page outline of the topic.

The 1-page outline must include a paragraph on the background and rationale for the topic and clearly identify a research question, in the PICO format, suitable for a systematic review. The course coordinator will review this outline and provide feedback to the student. In addition, interested students in the course must also identify a partner for the review. This can be anyone inside or outside the course, with sufficient interest and background. This person must be ready to undertake duplicate assessment of eligibility and validity.

Antirequisite: HRM *743

This fully online course utilizes problems, published presentations, discussion boards, quizzes and tutorials to explore basic statistical concepts and techniques as they apply to analysis and presentation of data encountered in biostatistical and epidemiology practice. The course covers: graphical presentation of data, elementary probability, descriptive statistics, probability distributions, and introduces hypothesis testing using parametric and non-parametric methods.

Additional Information:

This is an introductory course in biostatistics. It will highlight basic statistical concepts and techniques as they apply to the analysis and presentation of data encountered in health research and epidemiology practice. The course covers: graphical presentation of data, elementary probability, descriptive statistics, hypothesis testing, and parametric and non-parametric statistical methods. This is an online course – all material, including learning modules, assignments, tutorials, and examinations, will be delivered in an online format. Students are required to attend 6 web-based tutorials (1-2pm EST. on Thurs Sept 12, Oct 3,17,31, Nov 14,28). Students are also required to complete 3 web-based examinations (1-3pm EST. on Fri Oct 7, Nov 4, Dec 2). The final assignment of this course requires a dataset. Students are strongly encouraged to obtain a dataset prior to beginning the course.

Prerequisites: Permission of Distance Education Coordinator
Antirequisite: HRM *702

This is a problem-oriented course with an introduction to economic concepts and evidence related to health and health care. Current health policy issues and controversies are analyzed using an economic framework and basic economic theory. Special emphasis on population health issues, the role of the health care system in affecting health, and the influence of various participants (health care providers, patients, government) on health care utilization and population health status. No prior economics background is necessary.

Prerequisites: None.

This is a basic graduate survey course on the economics of health and health care. Topics include the organization, financing and utilization of health care services. Both theory and evidence relating to patterns of consumer and provider behaviour are examined, as are the functioning and regulation of “markets” for health services. Major public policy issues in the provision of health care in Canada are identified and the economic aspects of such issues are considered in detail.

Prerequisites: Intermediate micro economics or permission of instructor.

The course is divided into two parts. The objective of Part 1 is to have students identify a suitable data set (research study) and develop a proposal describing their secondary analysis project. Students will be helped to develop their 1-2 page proposals which will include: the research question, a brief outline of its relevance and importance; identification of the appropriate data set(s); a brief statement about analytical approach to be used; and the identification of 3-4 key references. The instructors have access to several data sets that can be used for this course. This part will occur between October and December. There will be two class sessions – one in October and the other in November and the opportunity for two individual sessions. The objective of Part 2 is to complete the research paper (review of the literature, analysis of data, write-up and revision of the report) with the purpose of submitting the paper for review to a peer-reviewed journal. This part will occur between Jan-May and include 10 class sessions.

Prerequisites: Permission of instructor.

This course emphasizes economic modeling and testing theories of the behaviour of individuals and organizations in the health care system and its sub-systems (e.g. health insurance, health care); the methods and application of economic evaluation of health services, including health and biomedical research; and the analysis of alternative institutional arrangements as a response to market failure.
The specific topics addressed in the course may vary from year to year. A term paper by the student is required.

Prerequisites: Permission of instructor.