Current Projects > Multi-Topic Survey

Multi-Topic Survey, 2011

The Multi-Topic survey is an amalgamation of several short surveys on important member-nominated topics. We hope the survey will provide important new information that leads on to larger APRN studies.

The 2011 Multi Topic Survey has 3 topics led by Australian paediatricians; managing unsettled babies, IgE mediated food allergy and E-Learning. The online survey was sent to all APRN members on the 1st of December 2011 and we are continuing to collect responses.

Below is an outline of each study, how your answers will provide valuable information, and an ethics statement.

1. Managing Unsettled Babies
Romi River, Harriet Hiscock & Hava Gadassi
In the 2009 Delphi Study, paediatricians around Australia ranked the management of unsettled babies in the top 10 of research questions they would like answered. Whilst there is no gold standard for managing this common paediatric presentation, this survey aims to find out how you manage unsettled babies and how well equipped you feel to deal with this issue. Data collected in this survey will inform development of education materials for paediatricians and families alike.

2. IgE mediated Food Allergy
Margie Danchin, Katie Allen, Deborah Morawetz & Harriet Hiscock
Waiting lists for tertiary allergy services are increasing. This survey aims to find out how children with possible IgE-mediated food allergy present in your practice and how you diagnosis and manage them. Data will inform the development of an online training and clinical decision support package for paediatricians, to be developed in 2012.

3. E-Learning
Kathleen Gray & Sarah Davies
E-learning for continuing professional development (CPD) may take many forms, each with different advantages and limitations. Your responses in this section will provide baseline data about the current uses of e-learning for CPD and help to guide decisions about its future development and design.

Ethics Statement
It is likely that completing the survey will provide you with no direct benefit. However you may appreciate the opportunity to express an opinion or to describe your practice patterns and management strategies. We do not foresee any adverse consequences of participating in the research project and do not expect that the questions in this survey will cause you distress. The only inconvenience caused will be the time to complete the survey.

Data will be identifiable however it will be stored securely and only the APRN steering committee members and research assistants will have access to it. Your name may be used to contact you regarding specific projects but only if you indicate you are interested in the project/s. When your data are provided to each topic team for analysis your first name and surname are removed. We will never report individual responses. We will hold your information for seven years and then it will be destroyed.

The findings of this survey will be provided online at the APRN website and in publications. The source of funding for this research project is the Murdoch Childrens Research Institute.

If you have any concerns about the project or the way it is being conducted, and would like to speak to someone independent of the project, please contact: Director, Research Development & Ethics, The Royal Children’s Hospital on telephone: (03) 9345 5044.