The webinar discussed how strong international collaborative activity during COVID-19 produced quality evidence rapidly. A World Health Organization (WHO) commissioned Cochrane Rapid Scoping Review on the use of care bundles for patients with COVID-19 in the ICU was used as the exemplar case. The review was commissioned by the WHO to inform interim clinical guidelines for clinicians caring for patients with COVID-19, so speed was of the essence (three-week timeframe), but so too was quality. The webinar discussed how good communication and collaboration was critical in the process, and at what stages, and decisions taken to balance speed and quality in an era of rapid evidence need.
Valerie Smith is a Professor in Midwifery at the School of Nursing & Midwifery Trinity College Dublin (TCD), and a registered General Nurse, Midwife and Clinical Nurse Teacher. She has expertise across a range of evidence synthesis activities, including reviews of randomised and non-randomised trials, case-control studies, rapid review, and qualitative evidence syntheses. Valerie is a Cochrane Ireland and UK Senior systematic review trainer since 2015. She has mentored two Cochrane Fellows and 1 ESI Fellow to completion and is currently mentoring two ESI Fellows. Valerie is a member of the Executive Board of the Health Research Board Trials Methodology Research Network (and TCD’s representative Partner in the Network’s recently successful 5-year renewal), an Executive Committee member of Evidence Synthesis Ireland, and an invited member of the Expert Advisory Group for the National Maternity and Gynaecology Clinical Guideline Programme.