Building partnerships with the public by learning about Cochrane evidence

Article type
Authors
Nunn J1, Synnot A1, McDonald S2, Allen K2, Hill S1
1Cochrane Consumers and Communication Review Group, Australia
2Cochrane Australia, Australia
Abstract
Background: One of the goals of Cochrane’s Strategy 2020 is to make Cochrane the ‘home of evidence’ and to build greater recognition of our work amongst the public, including health practitioners, consumers, policymakers and guideline developers.
In order to develop stronger partnerships with the public, Cochrane Australia and the Consumers and Communication Review Group are working together to deliver a series of learning and development events for Australian consumers.
Objectives: To increase public understanding of health research and the role of evidence in informing health practice and policy.
Methods: Building on successful work in the UK, we are developing learning resources and activities to support the public to understand and value evidence from systematic reviews. We will take a partnership approach, working with local health service providers to create free learning and development opportunities for the public, patients, consumers and volunteers.
Specific learning objectives include participants being able to explain the value of systematic reviews, how this knowledge can be applied and how they can support the work of Cochrane. The events will use a series of learning resources, facilitated discussions and activities in order to achieve specific learning outcomes.
Results: The learning and development opportunities will be delivered in mid-2015. We have completed an initial scoping exercise and identified potential partner organisations, who are helping us shape both the content and the delivery model. We will be able to report on the success and impact of the project against planned objectives and measurable outcomes.
Conclusions: This work has implications for the way in which Cochrane can support the public to understand and value the evidence from Cochrane Reviews. We hope to build on this work and create a sustainable and scalable model, working in partnership with relevant organisations.