Article type
Year
Abstract
Background: An evidence-based health policy brief is one of the most important ways to present current best available evidence to health policy makers and decision makers. It is widely used by the World Health Organization (WHO) and ministries of health in many countries. However, few Chinese policy briefs were based on high quality systematic reviews and meta-analysis. As a part of a knowledge translation program on older adults health in China the Ministry of Health, China CDC, and WHO China Representative Office, started to develop evidence-based policy briefs for Chinese policy makers.
Objectives: To develop evidence-based policy briefs for Chinese policy makers based on systematic reviews.
Methods: Together with policy makers and healthcare providers in the field of elderly health, we determined four priority topics. We searched for systematic reviews, meta-analyses, overviews of systematic reviews, network meta-analyses via Health Systematic Evidence, Epistemonikos, the Cochrane Library and four other Chinese databases including CNKI, CBM, VIP and WANFAN. AMSTAR (A MeaSurement Tool to Assess systematic Reviews) was used to evaluate the quality of included reviews.
Results: We developed the following four evidence-based health policy briefs based on more than 60 systematic reviews within four months. 1) The optimal long-term care strategies for older adults in China; 2) Prevention of frailty and functional decline in older adults; 3) The optimal control strategies of diabetes and hypertension for older adults in China; 4) The development of evidence-based guidelines for older adults in China.
Conclusions: Systematic review and meta-analysis especially from the Cochrane Library can help researchers produce evidence-based health policy briefs more quickly and efficiently. The challenge is how health policy briefs can integrate systematic reviews and local experience, values and resources, and provide updated, practical and feasible recommendations for policy makers.
Objectives: To develop evidence-based policy briefs for Chinese policy makers based on systematic reviews.
Methods: Together with policy makers and healthcare providers in the field of elderly health, we determined four priority topics. We searched for systematic reviews, meta-analyses, overviews of systematic reviews, network meta-analyses via Health Systematic Evidence, Epistemonikos, the Cochrane Library and four other Chinese databases including CNKI, CBM, VIP and WANFAN. AMSTAR (A MeaSurement Tool to Assess systematic Reviews) was used to evaluate the quality of included reviews.
Results: We developed the following four evidence-based health policy briefs based on more than 60 systematic reviews within four months. 1) The optimal long-term care strategies for older adults in China; 2) Prevention of frailty and functional decline in older adults; 3) The optimal control strategies of diabetes and hypertension for older adults in China; 4) The development of evidence-based guidelines for older adults in China.
Conclusions: Systematic review and meta-analysis especially from the Cochrane Library can help researchers produce evidence-based health policy briefs more quickly and efficiently. The challenge is how health policy briefs can integrate systematic reviews and local experience, values and resources, and provide updated, practical and feasible recommendations for policy makers.