Rapid Qualitative Research Methods During Complex Health Emergencies: A Systematic Review of the Literature
Technical tool
The 2013-2016 Ebola outbreak in West Africa highlighted both the successes and limitations of social
science contributions to emergency response operations. An important limitation was the rapid and
effective communication of study findings. A systematic review was carried out to explore how rapid
qualitative methods have been used during global heath emergencies to understand which methods are
commonly used, how they are applied, and the difficulties faced by social science researchers in the field.
We also asses their value and benefit for health emergencies.