Evidence Synthesis Ireland (ESI), which hosts Cochrane Ireland, aims to make evidence syntheses more usable in every sense of the word – better designed, conducted and reported, more useable for decision-makers and more usable within health care policy and clinical practice decision making across the island of Ireland and beyond.
We provide education for researchers, clinicians, the public and policymakers who conduct or use evidence syntheses.
We build capacity in planning, doing and sharing evidence syntheses through Fellowships, workshops and scholarships.
We advance the way we plan, do and share the results of evidence synthesis by finding out how to do these steps better.
october 2025
Methods for qualitative evidence synthesis (QES) are now well established and decision makers are able to access rigorous QES on issues such as patient experiences of health conditions and interventions,
Methods for qualitative evidence synthesis (QES) are now well established and decision makers are able to access rigorous QES on issues such as patient experiences of health conditions and interventions, and contextual factors influencing intervention implementation. QES often generate theories and explanations about why and how interventions work or do not work as anticipated. By integrating these theories with evidence on intervention effects in a mixed methods synthesis, review teams can offer vital information to support implementation of review findings in practice. However, the diversity of approaches for integrating QES and effectiveness syntheses can make it challenging for reviewers to understand how best to integrate.
This two day interactive workshop delivered by co-convenors of the Cochrane Qualitative and Implementation Methods Group will introduce theory and practical examples of mixed methods synthesis. During group work participants will be encouraged to think reflectively on the strengths and limitations of diverse approaches. Each day will conclude with an open forum to reflect on the day’s activities and discuss issues relating to participants’ own review activity.
By the end of this workshop participants will:
Dates: 14th & 15th October
Time: 09:30 – 17:00
Places: 15 available for individuals who are resident in Ireland & Northern Ireland
Pre-requisites: Prior experience of systematic reviews but not necessarily specific experience of qualitative evidence synthesis or mixed methods synthesis
Location: Ashling Hotel, 10 – 13 Parkgate Street, Dublin 8
Prices: General €250; Student €140
Target Audience: Systematic review authors, guideline developers, health and social care professionals, academics, researchers, postgraduate students, decision makers, Evidence Synthesis Ireland Fellows and other professionals
Facilitators:
Prof. Angela Harden, Professor of Health Sciences, School of Health and Psychological Sciences, Department of Health Services Research and Management, City University of London
Dr. Katy Sutcliffe, Associate Professor, Evidence for Policy and Practice Information and Coordination Centre (EPPI Centre), University College London
Prof. James Thomas, Professor of Social Research & Policy, Evidence for Policy and Practice Information and Coordination Centre (EPPI Centre), UCL Social Research Unit, University College London
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14 (Tuesday) 9:30 am - 15 (Wednesday) 5:00 pm Irish Standard Time, UTC +1
Ashling Hotel, 10 - 13 Parkgate Street, Dublin 8
10 - 13 Parkgate Street, Dublin 8, D08 P38N
To register, CLICK HERE In this webinar Alison would like to share experiences of completing search summary tables and search evaluations within evidence syntheses projects. Search
To register, CLICK HERE
In this webinar Alison would like to share experiences of completing search summary tables and search evaluations within evidence syntheses projects. Search summary tables can help make our search methods and decisions more evidence informed. Once completed, you can discover, for example:
-which searches in which databases retrieved the included articles for your specific project
-which searches in which databases retrieved unique articles
-whether specific types of study were retrieved by searching specific databases
-which supplementary search methods retrieved additional relevant studies/articles
-were there included articles in the databases which our search did not retrieve
Reflecting on search methods at the end of, or even during, an evidence synthesis project is a good idea because it allows us to feed into update searches and future reviews. It can help make our search methods and decisions more evidence based
Speaker:
Alison Bethel is a Senior Research Fellow, Information Science, and currently works across three NIHR funded evidence synthesis groups at the University of Exeter Medical School: PenARC’s Evidence Synthesis Team, the HSDR Evidence Synthesis Centre and ISCA Evidence where she designs and runs systematic literature searches for all types of evidence synthesis projects. Alison is a co-convener for the Campbell Collaboration and is one of the UK’s Council Representatives for EAHIL. Alison also teaches within the UEMS and undertakes information retrieval research projects with her colleagues.
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(Thursday) 1:00 pm - 2:00 pm
ONLINE
The innovative ESI Fellowships give Fellows the opportunity to learn about evidence synthesis, with hands-on experience of how to plan, design, conduct and report an evidence synthesis. Fellows are placed virtually with world-class evidence synthesis centres and review teams in Ireland and internationally, on policy and practice relevant reviews.
We’re committed to improving how we gather, interpret, and share vast amounts of information, a process known as evidence synthesis. Our approach isn’t just about conducting research; it’s about improving the very methods we use to plan, conduct, and share the results of this process.
We work in many different research areas relevant to evidence synthesis and have a particularly strong focus on rapid reviews, knowledge translation and “studies within a review” (SWARs).
“ Reporting on health care topics can rely too much on asking experts or reporting the results of a single study…what would be much more useful to members of the public, especially when it comes to making decisions about their own health, is for people to understand how to situate health claims in the global body of evidence. “