The aim of the pretest was to increase the validity and reliability of data collection tools.
The validity and reliability of data collection in the GWTG-Stroke database has been reported in previous research.
Key methodological concerns, on which depends QI validity, are standardisation of data collection, reducing the workload of collection, and monitoring of QI inter-hospital variability.
268 277 271 277 The quality of data also depends on the reliability, validity, and responsiveness of data collection instruments such as questionnaires 278 or laboratory instruments.
This methodological approach involves the formulation of a number of detailed hypotheses, followed by testing their validity using multiple methods of data collection [ 10], see Figure 1.
Because the process of collaboration itself determines the premises of a research project (namely, how a phenomenon is conceived of and the ways it is to be apprehended) not reporting the methods of collaboration can make it difficult for others to assess the validity, reliability or trustworthiness of data collection and inferences, and to build on the methods of earlier groups.
Strengths of this study include the trial's randomised, pragmatic design, the use of theoretical framework and broad set of intervention strategies, the long duration of the intervention (10 months), the implementation of procedures to reduce potential threats to internal validity, such as the blinding of data collection interviewers and computer-based randomisation of groups.
Strengths of this study include the trial's randomised design, the use of theoretical framework and broad set of intervention strategies, the long duration of the intervention (12 months), the implementation of procedures to reduce potential threats to internal validity, such as the blinding of data collection interviewers and computer-based randomisation of groups.
