Qualitative Research Methods for Medicine and Health Sciences

Qualitative research methods are essential for addressing central questions arising from clinical and organisational practice. In medicine and healthcare, knowing and scientific knowledge cannot be reduced to what is measurable alone. It also depends on subjectivity, interpretation, clinical reasoning, interaction and ethical judgement. This book develops a coherent methodological framework in which these dimensions are understood as integral to knowledge development rather than as residual or secondary concerns. The opening chapters establish the philosophical foundations for a qualitative methodology grounded in healthcare practice and distinctly committed to the epistemic impact of subjectivity. Ontological assumptions about health and illness are made explicit and systematically linked to epistemological and methodological choices. Subsequent chapters guide the reader through the core stages of the research process-from design and data development to analysis and interpretation-consistently demonstrating how underlying assumptions shape methodological strategies and conclusions. Empirical examples illustrate methodological reasoning, critical decisions and common pitfalls. Unlike many introductory texts, this book treats subjectivity, clinical judgement and interpretation not as threats to scientific rigour, but as indispensable resources for knowledge development. Rather than offering a broad survey of qualitative traditions, it presents a coherent, practice-based approach that affirms the scientific legitimacy of qualitative research on its own terms. Written primarily for students and researchers new to qualitative methods at bachelor's, master's and doctoral levels in medicine and healthcare, the book also invites more experienced scholars to reflect critically on established methodological practices.

Kirsti Malterud MD PhD is Professor Emerita in General Practice at the University of Bergen, Norway.

Part 1. Knowing human life, health and illness, 1. A rich and diverse knowledge base for practice and inquiry, 2. Unpacking assumptions underpinning qualitative methods, 3. Rigour with a human face, 4. What makes research qualitative, and why it matters, 5. You are the interpreter - your most powerful research instrument, Part 2. Traversing the research process, 6. Planning, flexibility and field notes along the path, 7. Sampling guided by information power - advancing transferability, 8. Data creation interacting with various sources of knowledge, 9. Transcription - capturing voices, not just words, 10. "Analysis-the creative art of rigourous reflection ", 11. "From complexity to knowing-systematic text condensation", 12. "What counts as a result-and what does not?", 13. Writing your study-the craft and the joy, Part 3. "On different forms of design and data", 14. Dialogue across designs - understanding experiences, 15. Beyond conversation-narratives, unique cases and digital traces, 16. Observation as situated research practice, 17. Critical and committed inquiry in action, 18. "Metasynthesis-surfacing prior evidence and creating new knowing", 19. Between tacit knowing and research evidence, Part 4. Theoretical and methodological questions revisited, 20. "Theory situates interpretation, focus and abstraction", 21. "Validation revisited-soundness and scope of understanding", 22. Combining methods-sustaining philosophical coherence?, 23. "Artificial intelligence- friend or foe in qualitative studies?", Part 5. In conclusion, 24. Dialogue and reflexivity rather than checklists for rigour?, 25. "Recognising vulnerability as ethical responsibility", 26. Negotiating paradigms in the face of medical research traditions