Article type
Year
Abstract
Background: The Guidelines for Systematic Reviews of Health Promotion and Public Health Interventions were developed by an international taskforce of researchers, policy makers and practitioners, experienced in systematic review conduct and use, in order to improve the quality, appropriateness and relevance of Cochrane reviews of public health topics, for end users.
The topics covered in the Guidelines are relevant to public health decision making, but are not unique to this area. The content of the Guidelines is being incorporated into the Cochrane ReviewersÂ’ Handbook and Open-learning materials, with issues specific to the needs of public health reviews being included as an Appendix.
Objective: To evaluate the usefulness, readability and clarity of the content of the guidelines.
Methods: The Guidelines were broadly disseminated to Cochrane Review Groups, relevant Cochrane Field Co-ordinators, Cochrane reviewers, and participants of several public health systematic review training courses in Australia. The Guidelines were also promoted and distributed through email listservs, newsletters, and conferences. An evaluation proforma sought to elicit information on readability, coverage of issues and clarity of recommendations.
Results: The comments received to date have been summarised into categories which will inform future Guideline updates, including intended target group/users, readability, Â’uniqueness' to public health, inclusion of study designs other than RCTs, expectation and requirement for advisory groups, and increase in data required for extraction. All sections have been revised in line with the comments received, including changes to the wording to improve readability.
Conclusions: As public health methods develop, and the awareness of the value of systematic reviews increases, the standards for reviews need to reflect the information needs of decision makers. The process of developing guidelines has highlighted areas essential when considering complex decisions for public policy and programs. The Guidelines project will need to ensure there is an ongoing program for their evaluation and improvement. Continued input from reviewers and Review Groups will be essential to ensure the Guidelines remain relevant and useful to reviewers and users of systematic reviews.
The topics covered in the Guidelines are relevant to public health decision making, but are not unique to this area. The content of the Guidelines is being incorporated into the Cochrane ReviewersÂ’ Handbook and Open-learning materials, with issues specific to the needs of public health reviews being included as an Appendix.
Objective: To evaluate the usefulness, readability and clarity of the content of the guidelines.
Methods: The Guidelines were broadly disseminated to Cochrane Review Groups, relevant Cochrane Field Co-ordinators, Cochrane reviewers, and participants of several public health systematic review training courses in Australia. The Guidelines were also promoted and distributed through email listservs, newsletters, and conferences. An evaluation proforma sought to elicit information on readability, coverage of issues and clarity of recommendations.
Results: The comments received to date have been summarised into categories which will inform future Guideline updates, including intended target group/users, readability, Â’uniqueness' to public health, inclusion of study designs other than RCTs, expectation and requirement for advisory groups, and increase in data required for extraction. All sections have been revised in line with the comments received, including changes to the wording to improve readability.
Conclusions: As public health methods develop, and the awareness of the value of systematic reviews increases, the standards for reviews need to reflect the information needs of decision makers. The process of developing guidelines has highlighted areas essential when considering complex decisions for public policy and programs. The Guidelines project will need to ensure there is an ongoing program for their evaluation and improvement. Continued input from reviewers and Review Groups will be essential to ensure the Guidelines remain relevant and useful to reviewers and users of systematic reviews.