Department of Environmental and Occupational Health Sciences, University of Washington School of Public Health, Seattle, WA 98195, USA.
Center of Excellence in Environmental Toxicology, Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA 19104, USA.
Int J Environ Res Public Health. 2020 Sep 19;17(18):6842. doi: 10.3390/ijerph17186842.
Leveraging the community of practice recently established through the U.S. National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences (NIEHS) Disaster Research Response (DR2) working group, we used a modified Delphi method to identify and prioritize environmental health sciences Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) and associated Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) research questions. Twenty-six individuals with broad expertise across a variety of environmental health sciences subdisciplines were selected to participate among 45 self-nominees. In Round 1, panelists submitted research questions and brief justifications. In Round 2, panelists rated the priority of each question on a nine-point Likert scale. Responses were trichotomized into priority categories (low priority; medium priority; and high priority). A research question was determined to meet consensus if at least 69.2% of panelists rated it within the same priority category. Research needs that did not meet consensus in round 2 were redistributed for re-rating. Fourteen questions met consensus as high priority in round 2, and an additional 14 questions met consensus as high priority in round 3. We discuss the impact and limitations of using this approach to identify and prioritize research questions in the context of a disaster response.
利用美国国家环境卫生科学研究所（NIEHS）灾害研究应对（DR2）工作组最近建立的实践社区，我们使用改良的 Delphi 方法来确定和优先考虑环境健康科学严重急性呼吸系统综合征冠状病毒 2（SARS-CoV-2）和相关的 2019 年冠状病毒病（COVID-19）研究问题。在 45 名自我提名者中，选择了 26 名具有广泛专业知识的人员参加。在第 1 轮中，小组成员提交了研究问题和简短的理由。在第 2 轮中，小组成员根据九点李克特量表对每个问题的优先级进行了评分。响应分为三个优先级类别（低优先级；中优先级；高优先级）。如果至少有 69.2%的小组成员将研究问题评为同一优先级类别，则认为该研究问题达成共识。在第二轮中未达成共识的研究需求被重新分配以供重新评估。在第二轮中，有 14 个问题达成共识为高优先级，在第三轮中，又有 14 个问题达成共识为高优先级。我们讨论了在灾害应对背景下使用这种方法来确定和优先考虑研究问题的影响和局限性。
