Working on health issues in the Middle
East presents particular challenges because of access. Without the ability to
reach certain populations, it is necessary to sample similar populations and
use the data for research. My long-term goal is to work in maternal and child
health, concentrating on issues in the Middle East. Because of the lack of
information available, I will need to correlate information for related communities
to supplement my research. Having the opportunity from George Mason to do
intensive research has helped me understand the intricacies of data analysis.
My research entails poring over data
collected through the Global School-based student health survey (GSHS). Using
Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS), I re-coded the collected data and
ran statistical models in an effort to analyze and discover trends. Through
this research, I have been able to carefully represent how the youth of Oman
understand and discuss injures. Over the past week, I was able to finish coding
all of my data and began creating tables that represent a story of how, why, and
when young people in Oman are injured. Initially, my plan was to solely
investigate whether students were injured and whether those injuries were caused
by certain at-risk behaviors. However, after further analysis, I realized that
there was a better story to tell. Through looking at the student’s exposure to certain
behaviors, I found a way to figure out the likelihood of a student’s chance of
being injured, if other behaviors presented.
