Objective: To discuss possibilities and obstacles in combining quantitative and qualitative research methods in palliative care research.
Background: Qualitative and quantitative research approaches are based on different theories. Quantitative research is based on the biomedical model which is, in principal, designed to discover causal relationships. The focus of qualitative research however, is not measurement but rather understanding and interpretation. Health care researchers have started to use qualitative methods more commonly in combination with quantitative methods. There has been an ongoing debate between those in favour of the use of mixed models in health care research, and those who believe that the addition of qualitative methods is not appropriate. In our study, we chose a combination of both research approaches, based on the belief that they can be complementary to each other when they are used to answer different research questions.
Design: We will discuss this issue by using our recently started study. One of the research questions in our study is "how does the quality of life of end stage COPD patients compare to that of end stage lung cancer patients?" To obtain values for the quality of life, a quantitative approach is needed. These values will be gathered by using standardised questionnaires. Another research question is "what specific management problems do caregivers experience?" To really understand the nature and the meaning of these problems, a qualitative approach is necessary. We will be using interview techniques to answer this question.
Results: Will combining both approaches limit or enhance the study results of the design? An overview of the literature concerning the debate about using combined methods will be presented at the conference, illustrated by using our study on palliative care.