On 1st October the HSLG committee were delighted to welcome academic & health librarians for an in person CPD event in the Health Research Board. Brian Galvin spoke about managing uncertainty through strategic foresight, and Ailish Farragher, Caitriona Lee and Louise Farragher gave a number of presentations on improving search strategy development and reporting for better evidence.
Foresight is an approach to planning and policymaking that attempts to manage uncertainty. It does that this by using a variety of tools to identify possible threats and opportunities in the medium or long-term. This is not prediction but an attempt to develop an information resource that helps with decision making in the present. Engaging in foresight work develops anticipatory capacity and enables a more active role in supporting policy making and mobilising joint action.
Improving search strategy development and reporting for better evidence – The IS team discussed how you can improve your search strategy development and reporting, ensuring your contribution to the review is to a high standard
- using PRESS peer review of search strategies to improve your search strategy and choice of search resources
- using available guidance for searching for systematic reviews, scoping reviews and rapid reviews (Cochrane, JBI etc)
- using established quality assessment tools (AMSTAR, JBI for Systematic Reviews) to guide search decisions
- using reporting standards (PRISMA-S) to guide search decisions and reporting
Guidance on terminology, application, and reporting of citation searching: using the TARCiS statement, and tools that can help.
Below are slides from these presentations:
Document versions of the presentations: