Title: Theoretical versus Pragmatic Design Challenges in Qualitative Research

The relative merits of adopting a generic versus theoretical approach to undertaking qualitative research have polarised qualitative researchers and overshadowed the need to focus on research that address clinical questions. Drawing on the challenges of designing a study that explored parents’ experiences of living with a child with hydrocephalus, we will argue that over adherence to, and deliberations about, the philosophical origins of qualitative methods such as phenomenology, ethnography and grounded theory is undermining the role qualitative research could contribute to evidence-based healthcare, and suggest qualitative methods should stand alone.