Effectiveness of Health Research Proposal Development Trainings and Workshops - An Interventional Study

Abstract

Background
Research methodology and proposal development are essential for advancing health research. Educational
interventions can enhance competencies of the researchers. This study aimed to assess the effectiveness of such educational interventions in improving knowledge of health research among health care professionals.
Methods
A pre and post interventional study was conducted among 99 health care professionals at a tertiary health care center in Bharatpur, Chitwan, Nepal from February to April 2025. Data were collected from pre and post-test evaluations records of the trainings and workshops on health research proposal development. Knowledge levels before and after the intervention were analyzed and compared.
Results
Knowledge levels improved significantly after the intervention. Before training, 81.8% (95% CI: 72.8-88.85) of participants had low knowledge, 16.2% (95% CI: 9.53-24.91) had moderate knowledge, and 2.0% (95% CI: 0.25-7.11) had high knowledge. Post-intervention, moderate knowledge increased to 50.5% (95% CI: 40.27-60.71) and high knowledge increased to 9.1% (95% CI: 4.24-16.56), while low knowledge decreased to 40.4% (95% CI: 30.66-50.74). The mean post-test score (11.77 ± 2.68) was significantly higher than the pre-test score (9.10 ± 2.86) (p < 0.001).

Conclusions
Significant overall improvement in knowledge of the health care professionals on research methodology was observed after receiving the educational intervention. Hence, structured trainings and workshops on health research methodology and proposal development were found to be effective. Regular implementation of such interventions is recommended to strengthen research capacity and promote evidence-based practice.