by Tom Conway
Evidence Synthesis Ireland finished off the 2021/2022 academic year with a bang as we hosted two online workshops in the last weeks of June. Carol Lefebvre, an independent information consultant and founding member of Cochrane, led an online workshop on Search Techniques, HTAs and Guidelines on the 23rd and 24th of June. This was followed by the brilliantly titled SHAMROQS online workshop, led by Andrew Booth, Professor of Evidence Synthesis at the University of Sheffield, on the 30th June… SHAMROQS being an acronym for SynthHesis and Analysis Methods for Reviews Of Qualitative Studies! (Andrew’s wit for titles extends to his recent ESI webinar ‘Checklists for the reckless, tools for fools?: are instruments for assessing qualitative research fit for purpose?’), some of the happy attendees from this workshop below!
September is just around the corner and with that comes three ESI workshops. Our annual Critical Appraisal Skills Programme (CASP) workshop takes place on the 14th of September and is aimed exclusively at a clinical audience who want to develop critical appraisal skills through the excellent guidance of CASP facilitator Erika Ison. Erika is a massively experienced CASP facilitator and leads the attendees through a mixture of presentations and workshops where they learn how to use the CASP tools.
For our Qualitative Evidence Synthesis enthusiasts, ESI is delighted to have Dr Emma France, Associate Professor in Health Sciences at the University of Stirling, deliver a one-day online workshop on Meta-ethnography training on the 19th of September. And for anyone looking to gain an understanding of systematic reviews, we are excited to be back working with our returning ESI facilitators, Prof. Anne Matthews and Prof. Veronica Lambert from the DCU School of Nursing, Psychotherapy and Community Health. Anne and Veronica will deliver their online Introduction to Systematic Reviews workshop at the end of the September (29th, 30th & 6th, 7th October).
If you wonder what we get up to during the Summer months, the ESI team plan and strategize for the year ahead and we’ve a lot of exciting things planned. The 2022/2023 academic year will see a return of in-person workshops as well as keeping the online format for other workshops. Keep an eye on our newsletter and Twitter as we will soon be announcing our 2023 workshop schedule.
To see what’s currently coming up, please go to: https://evidencesynthesisireland.ie/training/
