Tehran University of Medical Sciences

Science Communicator Platform

Stay connected! Follow us on X network (Twitter):
Share this content! On (X network) By
Cochrane Effective Practice and Organisation of Care (Epoc) Qualitative Evidence Syntheses, Differences From Reviews of Intervention Effectiveness and Implications for Guidance Publisher



Glenton C1 ; Lewin S1, 2 ; Downe S2 ; Paulsen E1 ; Munabibabigumira S1 ; Agarwal S3 ; Ames H1 ; Cooper S4 ; Daniels K4 ; Houghton C5 ; Karimishahanjarini A6 ; Moloi H4 ; Odendaal W2, 4 ; Shakibazadeh E7 Show All Authors
Authors
  1. Glenton C1
  2. Lewin S1, 2
  3. Downe S2
  4. Paulsen E1
  5. Munabibabigumira S1
  6. Agarwal S3
  7. Ames H1
  8. Cooper S4
  9. Daniels K4
  10. Houghton C5
  11. Karimishahanjarini A6
  12. Moloi H4
  13. Odendaal W2, 4
  14. Shakibazadeh E7
  15. Vasudevan L8
  16. Xyrichis A9
  17. Bohren MA10
Show Affiliations
Authors Affiliations
  1. 1. Norwegian Institute of Public Health, Oslo, Norway
  2. 2. University of Central Lancashire, Preston, United Kingdom
  3. 3. Department of International Health, Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, Baltimore, MD, United States
  4. 4. South African Medical Research Council, Tygerberg, South Africa
  5. 5. National University of Ireland Galway, Galway, Ireland
  6. 6. Hamadan University of Medical Sciences, Hamedan, Iran
  7. 7. Tehran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran
  8. 8. Duke University, Durham, NC, United States
  9. 9. King's College London, London, United Kingdom
  10. 10. Gender and Women’s Health Unit, Centre for Health Equity, School of Population and Global Health, University of Melbourne, Melbourne, VIC, Australia

Source: International Journal of Qualitative Methods Published:2022


Abstract

Systematic reviews of qualitative research (‘qualitative evidence syntheses’) are increasingly popular and represent a potentially important source of information about people’s views, needs and experiences. Since 2013, Cochrane has published qualitative evidence syntheses, and the Cochrane Effective Practice and Organisation of Care group has been involved in the majority of these reviews. But more guidance is needed on how to prepare these reviews in an environment that is more familiar with reviews of quantitative research. In this paper, we describe and reflect on how Cochrane qualitative evidence syntheses differ from reviews of intervention effectiveness and how these differences have influenced the guidance developed by the EPOC group. In particular, we discuss how it has been important to display to end users, firstly, that qualitative evidence syntheses are carried out with rigour and transparency, and secondly, that these quality standards need to reflect qualitative research traditions. We also discuss lessons that reviews of effectiveness might learn from qualitative research. © The Author(s) 2022.