Impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on ongoing health research: an ad hoc survey among investigators in Germany

Abstract

ObjectivesTo gain insights into the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on ongoing health research projects, using projects from a selected funding programme in Germany as an example.DesignOnline survey and validation workshop.SettingLockdowns and social distancing policies impact on clinical and public health research in various forms, especially if unrelated to COVID-19. Research institutions have reduced onsite activities, data are often collected remotely, and during the height of the crisis, clinical researchers were partially forced to abandon their projects in favour of front-line care.Participants survey120 investigators of health research projects across Germany, performed between 15 and 25 May 2020; workshop: 32 investigators, performed on 28 May 2020.ResultsThe response rate (78%) showed that the survey generated significant interest among investigators. 85 responses were included for analysis, and the majority of investigators (93%) reported that their projects were affected by the pandemic, with many (80%) stating that data collection was not possible as planned, and they could not carry out interventions as intended (67%). Other impacts were caused by staff being unavailable, for example, through child or elder care commitments or because of COVID-19 quarantine or illness. Investigators also reported that publications were delayed or not feasible at all (56%), and some experienced problems with PhD or Masters theses (18%). The majority of investigators had mitigation strategies in place such as adjustment of data collection methods using digital tools (46%) or of project implementation in general (46%), others made changes in research design or research questions (27%).ConclusionsThe COVID-19 pandemic has severely impacted on health research projects. The main challenge is now to mitigate negative effects and to improve long-term resilience in health research. The pandemic has also acted as a driver of innovation and change, for example, by accelerating the use of digital methods.

Using telepresence robots as a tool to engage patient and family partners in dementia research during COVID-19 pandemic: a qualitative participatory study

“…The COVID-19 pandemic has negatively impacted healthcare research due to in-person gathering restrictions [32][33][34]. Remote research has become increasingly ubiquitous.…”

Adapting a Medical School Cancer Research Education Program to the Virtual Environment: a Mixed-Methods Study

“…Fortunately, there continues to be innovation in how medical educators are becoming more adept at delivering content through multiple formats [11,12]. Additionally, researchers are reacting and adapting to the ongoing changes brought on by the pandemic [13,14]. As innovation in research methodology continues to occur, there is more opportunity for flexibility in how programs such as SOAR can be implemented, especially if participants are engaging in clinical or informatics-based research where a virtual or hybrid structure for research activities and mentorship may be sufficient-and comparable-to in-person.…”

Attitudes and practices of health care providers towards improving adherence to smoking cessation medications in Australia: A descriptive study

“…Although this study is the first study to evaluate the attitudes and practices of HCPs towards providing services for adherence to smoking cessation medications in Australia, there are several limitations that should be considered during the interpretation of the findings. Data was collected during the coronavirus (COVID‐19) pandemic crisis and was impacted due to a reduction in onsite activities such as face‐to‐face data collection 38 . One of the limitations in conducting an online survey using professional societies' social media platforms is the difficulty in determining the exact denominator to calculate the response rate 39,40 .…”