Using Case Studies in Other Fields

Case studies are a valuable way to study and learn about a person, group, place, event, company, or an organization. When most people think of a case study, they think of a psychological case study, or a business case study.

But case studies are used in almost every field, and are incredibly valuable in all of them. Outside of psychology, sociology, and business, here are the next five fields that utilize case studies.

Case studies are a mainstay of medicine. In fact, when confronted with challenging cases, doctors look to past case studies to determine what the next course of action should be. Medical case studies are normally submitted to medical journals for publishing when they are completed.

The process of developing the medical case study is similar to that of other case studies, and follows these steps:

1. Select the case. The key to the successful case study is finding a patient that has a rare or unusual condition or illness. It is these unique cases that are most often selection by medical journals for publication.

When searching for a case, speak with physicians about which of their cases might make an interesting case study. Senior physicians are an invaluable source of information, since they have so much experience. They may even have notes or other resources that could be available to you.

2. Research the case. Review medical journals on the diagnosis that will be the focus of your study. Medical libraries are a great place to find journal articles or books that can provide background information.

3. Obtain Patient Information and consent. You are required to obtain written patient consent before using a patient in your study. This is an ethical requirement. Most medical journals have their own forms that must be completed before your study can be published.

You will need to get all patient information, such as age, medical history, and medications taken. You want detailed info, so that your audience will be informed about the case. You will also want to learn about any history of mental health or emotional issues.

4. Write the medical case study. The medical case study follows the same format as most case studies. It will have an abstract, introduction, and presentation of the case, possible solutions, and the conclusion. You will also have to include all references.

The abstract is a short written summary that will summarize the entire case study. The abstract is what is published in the medical journals, and will be your opportunity to "sell" your case study to readers.

5. Submit case study to professional medical journals.

Normally you can only submit to one journal at a time. If your study is rejected, the publication will let you know why. Then you can choose to fix the study based on the journal's recommendations, or decide to submit to a different journal entirely.

In order for the U.S. Food and Drug Administration to consider drug trials, or for professional oversight committees to consider new methods of therapy, a case study must be published in a respected medical journal. ]]>