The following meeting took place on 8 October 2015 in Vienna, following the Cochrane Colloquium, and was attended by 50 participants. The meeting was organised by Joanne McKenzie, Steve McDonald, Carole Lunny, Lisa Hartling and Michelle Foisy.
The aims of the meeting were to discuss key methods issues for overviews of systematic reviews, including:
- what we know about the methods for overvews
- where there is uncertainty in the methods
- what guidance reviewers are seeking
- where empircal evidence is required
- what research needs to be prioritised
The intended outcomes were to explore the potential for a group dedicated to methods research in overview, and to promote international collaborations.
Meeting notes
A summary of the topics presented and of the discussion on furture research directions and priorities is available here.
Slide presentations
- Evidence map of studies evaluating the methods for conducting, interpreting and reporting overviews (Carole Lunny) Slides
- Methods research in overviews of reviews: overview of research program (Lisa Hartling) Slides
- Avenues for further research (Dawid Pieper) Slides
- An algorithm to assign GRADE levels of evidence to comparisons within systematic reivews (Alex Pollock) Slides
- Constructing an overview of systematic reviews of diagnostic test accuracy (Harriet Hunt) Slides
- What should we expect from overviews ? (James Thomas) Slides
- Guidance for conducting overviews of reviews: an update of the Cochrane Handbook chapter (Lisa Hartling) Slides
Further information and resources relating to overviews can be found on the Comparing Multiple Interventions Methods Group website.