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Comprehensive Search Strategy (comprehensive + search_strategy)
Selected AbstractsCochrane Skin Group systematic reviews are more methodologically rigorous than other systematic reviews in dermatologyBRITISH JOURNAL OF DERMATOLOGY, Issue 6 2006A. Collier Summary Background, The Cochrane collaboration aims to produce high-quality systematic reviews. It is not known whether the methods used in producing Cochrane Skin Group (CSG) reviews result in higher quality reviews than other systematic reviews in dermatology. Objectives, To determine how the methodological quality of dermatological CSG reviews published in The Cochrane Library and in peer-reviewed journals compare with non-Cochrane systematic reviews. Methods, Two blinded investigators independently assessed review quality using the 10-item Oxman and Guyatt scale. Results, Thirty-eight systematic reviews (17 Cochrane reviews published in The Cochrane Library, 11 Cochrane reviews published in peer-reviewed journals and 10 non-Cochrane reviews published in peer-reviewed journals) were examined. The Cochrane Library reviews included quality of life (11/17 vs. 1/10, P = 0·014) and adverse outcomes (14/17 vs. 2/10, P = 0·003) more often than non-Cochrane reviews published in peer-reviewed journals. Cochrane reviews published in both peer-reviewed journals and The Cochrane Library were more likely to include comprehensive search strategies (11/11 and 17/17 vs. 6/10, P -values = 0·04 and 0·01), take steps to minimize selection bias (11/11 and 16/17 vs. 3/10, P -values = 0·003 and 0·001) and appropriately assess the validity of all included trials (10/11 and 16/17 vs. 4/10, P -values = 0·04 and 0·007) than non-Cochrane reviews. Overall, Cochrane reviews published both in peer-reviewed journals and in The Cochrane Library were assigned higher quality scores by reviewers than non-Cochrane reviews (median = 6·0 and 6·5 vs. 4·5, P -values = 0·01 and 0·002). Conclusions,The Cochrane Library systematic review methodology leads to higher quality reviews on dermatological topics. [source] How to read and understand and use systematic reviews and meta-analysesACTA PSYCHIATRICA SCANDINAVICA, Issue 6 2009S. Leucht Objective,: Systematic reviews and meta-analyses are increasingly frequently used in the evaluation of medical treatments. This review explains the principles of the methodology, significance and limitations of systematic reviews. Method:, Short review article. Results:, In contrast to conventional reviews, systematic reviews use a structured approach in retrieving, analyzing and interpreting the evidence. A comprehensive search strategy is applied to identify all relevant trials. Study selection and data extraction is performed independently by at least two reviewers. The data are usually synthesized in a meta-analysis applying statistical methods to examine homogeneity. Funnel plots and other statistical methods are applied to detect publication bias. Conclusion:, Due to the enormous amount of scientific information published every year, systematic reviews and meta-analyses have become indispensable methods for the evaluation of medical treatments. [source] Systematic review on embracing cultural diversity for developing and sustaining a healthy work environment in healthcareINTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF EVIDENCE BASED HEALTHCARE, Issue 1 2007Alan Pearson RN, FRCN, FRCNA Abstract Objectives, The objective of this review was to evaluate evidence on the structures and processes that support development of effective culturally competent practices and a healthy work environment. Culturally competent practices are a congruent set of workforce behaviours, management practices and institutional policies within a practice setting resulting in an organisational environment that is inclusive of cultural and other forms of diversity. Inclusion criteria, This review included quantitative and qualitative evidence, with a particular emphasis on identifying systematic reviews and randomised controlled trials. For quantitative evidence, other controlled, and descriptive designs were also included. For qualitative evidence, all methodologies were considered. Participants were staff, patients, and systems or policies that were involved or affected by concepts of cultural competence in the nursing workforce in a healthcare environment. Types of interventions included any strategy that had a cultural competence component, which influenced the work environment, and/or patient and nursing staff in the environment. The types of outcomes of interest to this review included nursing staff outcomes, patient outcomes, organisational outcomes and systems level outcomes. Search strategy, The search sought both published and unpublished literature written in the English language. A comprehensive three-step search strategy was used, first to identify appropriate key words, second to combine all optimal key words into a comprehensive search strategy for each database and finally to review the reference lists of all included reviews and research reports. The databases searched were CINAHL, Medline, Current Contents, the Database of Abstracts of Reviews of Effectiveness, The Cochrane Library, PsycINFO, Embase, Sociological Abstracts, Econ lit, ABI/Inform, ERIC and PubMed. The search for unpublished literature used Dissertation Abstracts International. Methodological quality, Methodological quality was independently established by two reviewers, using standardised techniques from the Joanna Briggs Institute (JBI) System for the Unified Management, Assessment and Review of Information (SUMARI) package. Discussion with a third reviewer was initiated where a low level of agreement was identified for a particular paper. Following inclusion, data extraction was conducted using standardised data extraction tools from the JBI SUMARI suite for quantitative and qualitative research. Data synthesis was performed using the JBI Qualitative Assessment and Review Instrument and JBI Narrative, Opinion and Text Assessment and Review Instrument software to aggregate findings by identifying commonalities across texts. Quantitative data were presented in narrative summary, as statistical pooling was not appropriate with the included studies. Results, Of the 659 identified papers, 45 were selected for full paper retrieval, and 19 were considered to meet the inclusion criteria for this review. The results identified a number of processes that would contribute to the development of a culturally competent workforce. Appropriate and competent linguistic services, and intercultural staff training and education, were identified as key findings in this review. Conclusions, The review recommends that health provider agencies establish links with organisations that can address needs of culturally diverse groups of patients, include cultural competence in decision support systems and staff education as well as embed them in patient brochures and educational materials. The review also concluded that staff in-service programs consider the skills needed to foster a culturally competent workforce, and recruitment strategies that also explicitly address this need. [source] Rehabilitation for community-dwelling people with stroke: home or centre based?INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF STROKE, Issue 3 2010A systematic review Stroke rehabilitation for people living in the community is commonly delivered either in a centre, outpatient or day hospital setting. More recently, services may be offered in the actual home of the person as home-based or domiciliary rehabilitation. There are differing reports of the benefits and barriers of home-based vs. centre-based community rehabilitation. This systematic review sought to pool data from all retrieved studies that compared the functional benefits of home-based vs. centre for community-dwelling people with stroke. A comprehensive search strategy was implemented in all major databases (Cochrane library, Medline, AMED, Embase, Ageline, Cinahl, PEDro) for randomised controlled trials investigating this question in relation to functional benefits as a primary outcome and carer, cost or other benefits as secondary outcomes. There were no language or date limits. Eleven trials were found and results pooled for the Barthel Index, the measure of functional independence used consistently across the majority of retrieved studies. There was a significant effect in favour of home-based rehabilitation at 6 weeks (P=0·03) and 3,6 months (P=0·01). The effects were less clear at 6 months, although this was using the less sensitive version of the Barthel Index (P=0·27 or adjusted P=0·04). Individual studies reported cost benefits and increased carer satisfaction in favour of home-based rehabilitation. The provision of rehabilitation for people living in the community should trend towards home-based. Further research is required into adverse events and the experiences of all stakeholders. [source] Systematic review: role of health promotion in vascular dementiaJOURNAL OF NURSING AND HEALTHCARE OF CHRONIC ILLNE SS: AN INTERNATIONAL INTERDISCIPLINARY JOURNAL, Issue 2 2010BSc(Hons), Rachel S Price MSc price rs & keady j (2010) Journal of Nursing and Healthcare of Chronic Illness 2, 88,101 Systematic review: role of health promotion in vascular dementia Aims., This narrative synthesis of the literature investigates the areas of vascular dementia and modifiable risk factors in order to identify the evidence base and opportunities for specific health promotion work and nursing involvement. Background., Strategies for well-being, prevention and health promotion are becoming increasingly important determinants of a quality dementia care service. In England, this emphasis is manifest in the recently launched National Dementia Strategy (February 2009) and areas that address modifiable vascular risk factors are helpful starting points for the enactment of such goals. Design and methods., A comprehensive search strategy identified primary and secondary search terms that were used systematically in order to search for relevant information and literature; 128 articles were finally included in the overall design and these were broken down into 116 articles obtained through the formal search process using the online databases and 12 articles from the ,grey literature'. Results., A narrative synthesis of the included material generated a thematic framework that revealed four discrete but overlapping themes: vascular risk factors (1); prevention and reduction of vascular risk factors (2); treatment and intervention in vascular dementia (3); and vascular health promotion (4). Relevance to clinical practice., Nursing is in a prime position to undertake health promotion initiatives in modifiable risk behaviours in vascular dementia, an approach that should be commenced for the general population in mid-life (50 years and over). [source] | ||||||||||