Claire Glenton, Summing up: challenges and possible solutions when summarising the findings of Cochrane reviews
Lorne Becker, Umbrella Reviews: What are they, and do we need them?
James R Scott, Cochrane reviews: a journal editor's viewpoint
Martin Offringa, Evidence Based Child Health: a Cochrane review Journal - why and how?"
Terry Klassen, Evidence Based Child Health: a Cochrane review Journal – acute complications and eventual remedies
As we approach the 3000th full Cochrane review, the challenges of making their findings more accessible are ever increasing. This session will describe initiatives to help meet these challenges. We will hear about ways to distil the information in Cochrane reviews into shorter summaries and to combine multiple reviews into new, umbrella, reviews. Other means of dissemination are also important. There will be talks from the perspective of a long-standing print journal keen to help make the message in Cochrane reviews more available and about an initiative between The Cochrane Collaboration and Wiley to produce a new journal based heavily on Cochrane reviews.
Plenary 2
Wednesday 25 October 0900 - 1030
Co-Chairs: Mike Clarke and Nandi Siegfried
Speakers:
Mary Robinson, A human rights approach to tackling the AIDS pandemic
George Rutherford, The role of evidence-based medicine and public health in confronting the HIV/AIDS pandemic
Gail Kennedy, The mentoring programme of The Cochrane Collaboration's HIV/AIDS Group
HIV/AIDS is the greatest healthcare challenge facing some parts of the world, if not the world as a whole. People affected have a right to health, which will require the use of health care interventions that are effective. Likewise, policy makers need good evidence to help them to set policies that will achieve this. In this plenary we will hear from speakers from around the world. In Dublin, the three speakers will discuss issues such as health as a human right and the efforts of the Cochrane Collaboration's HIV/AIDS Group to support participation in, and the uptake of, systematic reviews. But we are also hoping to connect to several sites in other parts of the world, by audio-visual links. The people joining us over those links will highlight the range of needs for good evidence for good policy to tackle this crisis, and will prompt and hopefully take part in discussion of how The Cochrane Collaboration can help.
Plenary 3
Thursday 26 October 0900 - 1030
Co-Chairs: Sally Green and Helen Whelton
Speakers:
Miranda Mugford, What should Cochrane reviewers and editors do about economic evaluation methods?"
Jennie Popay, Incorporating qualitative information in systematic reviews
John Ioannidis, The Human Genome Epidemiology Network: making sense of 10,000,000 postulated genetic risk factors
There are always new challenges and new opportunities for systematic reviews. This session will stimulate thought and discussion of three such areas: economics, qualitative research and genetics. We will hear about how the authors of Cochrane reviews might take more account of economic and qualitative information in their reviews. The dramatic expansion of interest and research into genetics and health will also be discussed in the context of how systematic reviews could help decision makers cope with the vast quantity of knowledge being generated.
Plenary 4
Thursday 26 October 1530 - 1700
Co-Chairs: Declan Devane and Lesley Stewart
Speakers:
An-Wen Chan, Global opportunities and challenges for trial registration: Update from the WHO International Clinical Trials Registry Platform
Suzanne Hill, Challenges and opportunities in international evidence-based guideline developments
The Cochrane Collaboration provides one of the pieces of information needed to help people make well informed decisions about health: systematic reviews of the effects of healthcare interventions. Other types of knowledge and other organisations are also needed. This plenary will look at how another global organisation, the WHO, is contributing. The development of the WHO platform for clinical trials registries will help improve awareness of, and access to, individual pieces of research into the effects of healthcare interventions. Furthermore, the use of good evidence in the development of policy and guidelines will help ensure the translation of research findings into practice.
