What is Health Research? (FutureLearn)

What is Health Research? (FutureLearn)

Explore the world of health research and the role volunteers play in transforming treatments and improving health care. Learn about health research and explore opportunities to get involved. Have you ever wondered how doctors and nurses know what treatment or care to give? It’s only through health research that healthcare professionals find new and better ways of preventing, diagnosing and treating disease. Today’s research is tomorrow’s treatment.

Class Deals by MOOC List - Click here and see FutureLearn's Active Discounts, Deals, and Promo Codes.

On this course, you will learn how health research happens, why it matters and what to expect if you take part. You will also hear stories from people who have taken part in research; why they volunteered and the difference it made.

What topics will you cover?
What is the value of Health Research?

  • What is research?
  • Different types of research
  • Why do people get involved in health research?

How can you make an informed decision about taking part?

  • What can you expect?
  • How are people kept safe and informed during health research?

Being part of research

  • Why health research is exciting
  • How can you contribute?

What will you achieve?
By the end of the course, you‘ll be able to...

  • Reflect on patient case studies to describe what is involved in health research
  • Apply learning to make informed decisions on how and why you could participate in health research
  • Identify the questions to ask before taking part in health research
  • Identify who to contact to get more information about health research
Go to Class
MOOC List is learner-supported. When you buy through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission.

Related Courses

Clinical Bioinformatics: Unlocking Genomics in Healthcare (FutureLearn) FutureLearn
University of Manchester

Clinical Bioinformatics: Unlocking Genomics in Healthcare (FutureLearn)

Learn about the role of clinical bioinformaticians in healthcare and how their work is helping to realise the genomics revolution. This free online course aims to raise awareness amongst healthcare professionals of the role of Clinical Bioinformatics and Genomics in healthcare today.

Self Paced
5-12 Weeks
Digital Health for Cancer Management: Smart Health Technologies in Complex Diseases (FutureLearn) FutureLearn
Taipei Medical University

Digital Health for Cancer Management: Smart Health Technologies in Complex Diseases (FutureLearn)

Learn how new digital health technologies are transforming cancer management with this course for healthcare professionals. Recent advances in cancer treatment and management have lead to people with cancer living longer than ever before, now healthcare must begin to consider how to help people with cancer live healthily. On this course you will explore and discuss how new digital health technologies, like wearables, social media and home sensors, are starting to transform the management of cancer.

Self Paced
4 Weeks
Introduction to Emergency Contraception (FutureLearn) FutureLearn
University of East Anglia

Introduction to Emergency Contraception (FutureLearn)

Understand emergency contraception and the choices available with this course for people working in healthcare and related fields. Emergency contraception can be confusing, with different types available and public understanding sometimes limited. On this course you will master the basics of emergency contraception: learning about the different types of post-coital contraception, exploring clinical guideliness; and working out which type of contraception is appropriate in different situations.

Self Paced
3 Weeks
Understanding Anxiety, Depression and CBT (FutureLearn) FutureLearn
University of Reading

Understanding Anxiety, Depression and CBT (FutureLearn)

Improve your understanding of depression and anxiety and find out more about an effective and evidence-based treatment: CBT. Anxiety and depression are terms discussed widely, in different media and amongst family and friends. But what do those labels actually mean? On this five week course, from the University of Reading, you will explore what it means to have anxiety or depression and how they are identified.

Self Paced
5-12 Weeks
Heart Health: A Beginner's Guide to Cardiovascular Disease (FutureLearn) FutureLearn
University of Reading

Heart Health: A Beginner's Guide to Cardiovascular Disease (FutureLearn)

Learn more about how your heart works, the causes of heart disease and how to keep your heart healthy with this free online course. Learn how to keep your heart healthy. Your heart beats around 100,000 times a day, pumping blood around your body to deliver oxygen and nutrients, while taking away waste products. When your heart is unhealthy, it can’t perform this vital task so effectively.

Self Paced
4 Weeks
Health and Wellbeing in the Ancient World (FutureLearn) FutureLearn
The Open University

Health and Wellbeing in the Ancient World (FutureLearn)

Use literary and archaeological evidence to see how ancient Greeks and Romans approached health, well-being and societal issues. What did being healthy in ancient Rome or Greece look like? How can we tell what well-being meant in ancient times? This online course will help you investigate these questions, using both literary and archaeological evidence, to uncover details of real life in ancient societies.

Self Paced
5-12 Weeks
Perioperative Medicine in Action (FutureLearn) FutureLearn
University College London

Perioperative Medicine in Action (FutureLearn)

Explore perioperative medicine and how you can improve care for the high risk surgical patient. Join this RCoA endorsed course. Too many patients die or suffer prolonged complications following surgery. Perioperative medicine is an emerging, multi-disciplinary approach, which tackles this issue, by optimising the care of high-risk surgical patients. It encompasses disciplines including anaesthetics, surgery, nursing, care of the elderly, physiotherapy and healthcare management.

Self Paced
4 Weeks
Dysphagia: Swallowing Difficulties and Medicines (FutureLearn) FutureLearn
University of East Anglia

Dysphagia: Swallowing Difficulties and Medicines (FutureLearn)

This course will enhance the knowledge of any person involved in the administration of medicines to patients with dysphagia. The course offers an opportunity to network with other learners and with the creators of the course through discussions, graphs and social networking features and to share knowledge with other learners and professionals.

Self Paced
5-12 Weeks
Causes of Human Disease: Understanding Cardiovascular Disease (FutureLearn) FutureLearn
University of Leeds

Causes of Human Disease: Understanding Cardiovascular Disease (FutureLearn)

Explore normal cardiovascular function and risk factors associated with heart attack, stroke and other cardiovascular diseases. Cardiovascular diseases are the leading global cause of death. On this course, you’ll learn how the cardiovascular system functions and understand common cardiovascular diseases like heart attack and stroke, as well as the risk factors associated with them.

Self Paced
2 Weeks
Liver Disease: Looking After Your Liver (FutureLearn) FutureLearn
University of Birmingham

Liver Disease: Looking After Your Liver (FutureLearn)

Learn about how your liver works, ways to look after it and how liver damage is caused, studied and treated around the world. We are currently experiencing an international explosion of liver disease that continues to have enormous impact upon healthcare systems and global health. In the UK we have seen a 20% increase in deaths related to liver disease since 2000 and this pattern reflects the global situation.

Self Paced
3 Weeks
Improving Health Assessments for People with an Intellectual Disability (FutureLearn) FutureLearn
Trinity College Dublin,EIT Health

Improving Health Assessments for People with an Intellectual Disability (FutureLearn)

Learn how to improve healthcare for people with intellectual disabilities with this course for healthcare professionals. Detecting poor health and supporting people with an intellectual disability in managing their health can be challenging for healthcare professionals. During this course, you will gain valuable knowledge that you can transfer into your daily practice on how to include people with an intellectual disability in health assessments.

Self Paced
3 Weeks