Systematic Reviews for the Health Sciences: Resources

Institute of Medicine
E-book available to UIC users.
Also available at: http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK209518/

E-book available to UIC users.

Book available to UIC users.

E-book available to UIC users.

Guide on how to conduct, report and maintain a Cochrane Review. Contains essential guidance for preparing and maintaining Cochrane Reviews of the effects of health interventions. Designed to be an accessible resource, the Handbook will also be of interest to anyone undertaking systematic reviews of interventions outside Cochrane, and many of the principles and methods presented are appropriate for systematic reviews addressing research questions other than effects of interventions.

Practical guidance is provided on the fundamentals of systematic reviewing and also on advanced techniques such as meta-analysis. Examples are given in each chapter, with a succinct glossary to support the text. This up-to-date, accessible textbook will satisfy the needs of students, practitioners and educators in the sphere of healthcare, and contribute to improving the quality of evidence-based practice.

Provides an overview of the nature, logic, diversity and process of undertaking systematic reviews as part of evidence informed decision making. Covers the full breadth of approaches to reviews from statistical meta analysis to meta ethnography. It is ideal for anyone undertaking their own systematic review - providing all the necessary conceptual and technical background needed to make a good start on the process.   The content is divided into five clear sections:   * Approaches to reviewing * Getting started * Gathering and describing research * Appraising and synthesising data * Making use of reviews/models of research use.

This book, written by two highly-respected social scientists, provides an overview of systematic literature review methods: Outlining the rationale and methods of systematic reviews; Giving worked examples from social science and other fields; Applying the practice to all social science disciplines; It requires no previous knowledge, but takes the reader through the process stage by stage; Drawing on examples from such diverse fields as psychology, criminology, education, transport, social welfare, public health, and housing and urban policy, among others. Including detailed sections on assessing the quality of both quantitative, and qualitative research; searching for evidence in the social sciences; meta-analytic and other methods of evidence synthesis; publication bias; heterogeneity; and approaches to dissemination.

In this open access edited volume, international researchers of the field describe and discuss the systematic review method in its application to research in education. Alongside fundamental methodical considerations, reflections and practice examples are included and provide an introduction and overview on systematic reviews in education research.

A clear and wide-ranging introduction to evidence-based medicine and healthcare, helping readers to understand its central principles, critically evaluate published data, and implement the results in practical settings. Author Trisha Greenhalgh guides readers through each fundamental step of inquiry, from searching the literature to assessing methodological quality and appraising statistics. How to Read a Paper addresses the common criticisms of evidence-based healthcare, dispelling many of its myths and misconceptions, while providing a pragmatic framework for testing the validity of healthcare literature.

Introduction to Meta-Analysis: Outlines the role of meta-analysis in the research process. Shows how to compute effects sizes and treatment effects. Explains the fixed-effect and random-effects models for synthesizing data. Demonstrates how to assess and interpret variation in effect size across studies. Clarifies concepts using text and figures, followed by formulas and examples. Explains how to avoid common mistakes in meta-analysis. Discusses controversies in meta-analysis.

This book focuses on performing hands-on meta-analysis using MetaXL, a free add-on to MS Excel. The illustrative examples are taken mainly from medical and health sciences studies, but the generic methods can be used to perform meta-analysis on data from any other discipline. The book adopts a step-by-step approach to perform meta-analyses and interpret the results.

Publication Bias in Meta-Analysis examines the different types of publication bias, and presents the methods for estimating and reducing publication bias, or eliminating it altogether.

In this book, Volume 3 of the Methods in Nursing Research series, Barbara Paterson and colleagues provide step-by-step directions for how to proceed in conducting a meta-study, as well as recommendations for tools and standards relating to the application of their approach. Drawing from their experience with meta-study research projects on chronic illness, the authors articulate and theorize the meta-analysis and meta-synthesis of qualitatively derived knowledge.

This book describes the planning, conduct and reporting of a meta-analysis as applied to a series of randomized controlled clinical trials.
* The various approaches are presented within a general unified framework.
* Meta-analysis techniques are described in detail, from their theoretical development through to practical implementation.
* Each topic discussed is supported by detailed worked examples.
* A comparison of fixed and random effects approaches is included, as well as a discussion of Bayesian methods and cumulative meta-analysis. *