Journal Critique

Introduction

The research problem in this journal article states that “home care services are being used for a variety of diseases, but research about their effectiveness in the care of cancer patients had been largely inconclusive”. This problem statement agrees with the title and is of both medical as well as educational importance. This research problem is clear and the reader does not have to read several times to fully understand as well as appreciate the purpose of the research. Craswell (2003) argues that a research question should not be too broad or too narrow and should not concentrate on an area that has been subject to a number of research projects. It hence follows that this researcher should have concentrated on the other grey areas concerning provision of homecare services. This is because numerous researches have been carried out in this particular area and as such the researchers work could be regarded just as another piece of research.

With regard to review of literature, it is included in this article but the articles author does not cite a wide range of references as it would have been expected keeping in mind that this is an area many researchers have concentrated on in the past. The author however uses a number of appropriate and current references in the introductory part or section which are very effective in enabling the reader to understand and appreciate the subject. The author tested the hypothesis with regard to how effective homecare was in the care of cancer patients. The purpose was in agreement with the title and it was brought out in a very clear as well as concise way. Concerning the methodology, the author explained it in satisfactory detail and the data gathering methods for this particular article were explained in detail. The author however does not give the reliability coefficients of the possible tests but to his credit, he comes up with an explanation of various developments as well as instruments.

The author’s findings are very well organized and objectively reported. The author provides personal data as well as control group in a tabular form backed by a very brief narrative. However the tables are very technical to the average reader as a result of the statistical tests the author uses. With that in mind, the author should have used a more detailed narrative to ensure that even the average reader understands and appreciates the findings. Also the author does not give a summary which could have been beneficial to the average reader.The conclusions are stated in a logical fashion and they are entirely based on the findings. To establish whether consistent findings will be achieved in this area of research, the author recommends that more research be carried out to establish the effectiveness of homecare with regard to cancer patients. However, these recommendations by the author can be seen to be very limited. They can be seen to be just another call for more research in this particular area.

Conclusion

For a journal article, this research project can be seen to be rather detailed. Its organization as well as planning is commendable. However, as a result of complex statistical procedures used in this research, the article’s reporting of data is very complicated to the average reader. Generally, the article makes important as well as significant and vital contributions with regard to the applicability of homecare with regard to cancer patients.

References

Craswell, J.W (2003). Research design: qualitative, quantitative, and mixed method approaches 2nd Edition. SAGE

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