The 2018 Plan & Budget for Cochrane’s central funds was approved by the Governing Board at its teleconference on 12th December and is now available on the Cochrane Community website. More information about the Strategy to 2020 Targets in 2018 will follow early in the new year, as will the minutes from the Board’s teleconference.
In the meantime, please contact Lucie Binder, Senior Advisor to the CEO, if you have any questions.
Specifications: Availability for the equivalent of one half day per week (0.1 FTE)
Salary: Around £8,000 or equivalent per annum
Location: Unlimited
Application Closing Date: 20th Jan 2018
As part of its Transformation Project, we are creating a new Editorial Board for the Cochrane Library. The Editorial Board will be responsible for developing and monitoring editorial and content strategy for the Library, and monitoring the performance of the Cochrane Library, in support of the Editor in Chief and his team. We are now seeking an experienced methodologist to join the Board, to provide specialist guidance and support to the Board.
The Board will also include:
The Editorial Board will be accountable to Cochrane’s Editor in Chief (EiC). It will be responsible for supporting the EiC and overseeing development and implementation of an editorial strategy, the review production process for Cochrane Reviews, and monitoring the performance of the Cochrane Library.
The Senior Methods Adviser role on the Editorial Board will include the following:
The Senior Methods Adviser on the Editorial Board will possess the seniority and experience that enables her or him to fulfil the role as described above, and to be a credible leader within the methods community.
Essential characteristics include:
Desirable attributes:
The Senior Methods Adviser will receive an honorarium of 8000 GBP for the equivalent of at least one half day per week of activity.
The Senior Methods Adviser will be appointed in early 2018. He or she will serve as a member of Cochrane’s Editorial Board for a period of three years, renewable for a further three years.
The successful candidate will be required to complete a conflict of interest disclosure.
The Editorial Board is likely to function primarily as a virtual body, so that geographical location is not a barrier to appointment. We welcome applications from individuals based anywhere in the world.
The appointment process will consider the need for all aspects of diversity, including those of gender, age, experience, language and geographical location within the membership of the Editorial Board. Cochrane’s Editor in Chief aims to appoint a balanced Editorial Board that includes a wide range of content and methodological expertise.
We are open to job share applications that describe how the functions will be divided, and how continuity will be achieved.
All applications will be reviewed by the Editor in Chief, the Deputy Editor in Chief, and the Sustainability Project Team, who will jointly make the appointments.
To apply, please send a letter, Curriculum Vitae, and letter of support from your line manager in your primary role to recruitment@cochrane.org by Monday 20th January 2018.
Cochrane’s Iberoamerican Network is delighted to announce the formation of a new Cochrane Centre to enhance health decision-making in Chile.
Cochrane Chile will promote evidence-informed health decision-making by supporting and training new Chilean authors of Cochrane Reviews, as well as working with clinicians, professional associations, policy-makers, patients, and the media to encourage the dissemination and use of Cochrane evidence.
Cochrane Chile will be coordinated and led by its Director, Gabriel Rada, who will offer methodological support, mentoring, and supervision to the Cochrane Chile Centre. He says this is a hugely exciting opportunity: “The launch of Cochrane Chile is very important, both to Chile and globally. Producing and increasing the dissemination of the best available information on health care is critical for clinicians and patients everywhere in the world.”
The new Centre is part of The Cochrane Iberoamerican Network. Director, Xavier Bonfil added, “It is a wonderful opportunity for Chilean researchers to have more direct contributions in order to produce and disseminate Cochrane knowledge. I believe that this Centre will be a cornerstone to advocate evidence-informed practice in Chile and Cochrane’s formal presence in the country will help spread the mission of Cochrane’s work.”
Cochrane’s CEO Mark Wilson, warmly welcomed today’s news, “I am very proud to welcome a new Cochrane Centre in Chile. The Centre is made up of an outstanding group of collaborators from around the country and I am confident that they will make Cochrane evidence even more accessible and useful for all those who need it in Chile. In 2019 Santiago will host Cochrane’s annual global meeting and this new Centre reflects the confidence we have in Cochrane Chile’s new dynamic team.
For more information on the work of Cochrane Chile, please visit the https://chile.cochrane.org/
Following its meeting in Cape Town in September 2017, Cochrane’s Governing Board approved the Structure & Function of Cochrane Review Groups: Implementation of the Networks and Editorial Board Plan.
As part of this plan, every CRG will need to be re-accredited every five years in order to continue as a Cochrane Group. To support this process, the Structure and Function Project Team has developed guidance to support Groups through re-accreditation: Guidance for the re-accreditation process for Cochrane Review Groups.
Cochrane’s Editor in Chief, David Tovey, and Deputy Editor in Chief, Karla Soares-Weiser, recently hosted a community webinar providing CRG staff with further information regarding this process. If you were unable to attend, please watch a recording of the webinar on Wednesday 29th November.
Should you have further questions, please send your inquiry to SFinfo@cochrane.org.
Customer feedback on the functionality of the Cochrane Library is welcomed; see information on how to contact Wiley customer services. Wiley and Cochrane monitor the feedback, and from time to time, significant issues are raised. There are three issues at the moment that may particularly impact users, including the Cochrane community, and we are providing a summary of these issues. Should you have any questions or concerns about these, please do contact David Hives, Cochrane Production Manager, Wiley (dhives@wiley.com).
1. Search index problem for some Cochrane Reviews
There is a search index problem on the Cochrane Library, affecting some Cochrane Reviews (not CENTRAL records) published since April 2017 or any that have a 3-digit year date instead of a 4-digit year date. This results in some newly published reviews and protocols in the Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews (CDSR) not being returned in search results and/or the links go older versions of the article. All Cochrane Reviews and protocols are available via the browse options or via the table of contents. More details
2. Review group filter not finding all reviews
There is an issue with the Search Limit “By Review Group” in the Advanced Search of the Cochrane Library. This means that new citation versions of Cochrane Reviews and protocols (not CENTRAL records) will not be found using a Review Group Search Limit. More details
3. ‘New’ tag removed for CENTRAL records
Since the publication of Issue 10, 2017 (31 October 2017), it has not been possible to use the ‘New’ filter in Advanced Search for CENTRAL records (other databases in the Cochrane Library are not affected). More details
Request for comments on draft “Interim guidance on how to decide whether to incorporate clinical study reports and other regulatory documents into Cochrane Reviews” - *DEADLINE 22nd December 2017*
A Cochrane funded (Methods Innovation Fund) project has developed guidance on when to consider regulatory data for inclusion in Cochrane Reviews. Regulatory data includes clinical study reports of trials and other studies, and any other relevant information provided to regulators by trial sponsors. This guidance is interim because we ultimately aim to provide guidance on how to incorporate this type of evidence in Cochrane Reviews to address reporting bias which distorts much of contemporary literature and may affect the conclusions of an unknown number of Cochrane Reviews. This interim guidance includes a rationale, a section explaining the triggers for consideration of regulatory data, the results of a survey relevant to current Cochrane practice, and a planned interactive glossary of regulatory terms. The guidance development project is coordinated by Tom Jefferson (Senior Associate Tutor, University of Oxford, UK) with seven other authors representing CRGs and Methods Groups who expressed an interest in contributing to the project.
We invite anyone within the Cochrane Community with an interest in addressing reporting bias in studies included in Cochrane Reviews. So, all those working in Cochrane Groups (Centres, Fields, CRGs, Methods), trainers and relevant members of the Central Executive team. Group feedback rather than individual is acceptable should you wish to confer with colleagues. There are two documents (PDF) for participants to review and an excel spreadsheet for comments, please download to complete.
Please complete comments sheet by line number. We are not able to the accept any annotated Word or PDF files. Please return completed form with your surname in the Reviewer ID worksheet tab to jefferson.tom@gmail.com. In the body of your email please provide your full name, email address and Cochrane affiliation stating whether the comments are representing an individual or a Group view. For general enquires about this survey please contact Jackie Chandler, Methods Co-ordinator jchandler@cochrane.org. Deadline 22nd December 2017.
Once collated, the final guidance will undergo Scientific Committee review. We will create a short plain language summary available for editorial staff and a guidance document will be incorporated into the next version of the Cochrane Handbook for Systematic Reviews of Interventions.
Cochrane is delighted to announce the full launch of all nine modules of its new online introductory training course on how to conduct a systematic review of interventions, available at interactivelearning.cochrane.org.
Cochrane authors and other producers of systematic reviews from across the world will be able to access self-directed learning on framing a review, searching for studies, risk of bias assessment, meta-analysis, GRADE, and the complete systematic review process, developed by world-leading experts in systematic review methods
New learners will have the chance to embark on modular, interactive training on how to produce systematic reviews, and experienced authors can refresh their skills with the latest guidance and best practice.
Cochrane Interactive Learning offers dynamic, flexible, and engaging content with nine modules and over 100 bite-size learning units, building knowledge for new and existing authors one step at a time. They provide clear explanations with stimulating interactions, quizzes, animations, examples, and reference resources, and enable learners to tailor their learning experience, in their own time, and from anywhere in the world, from a laptop, tablet, or phone.
The course will also serve educators in evidence-based health care, providers of professional development to researchers or health professionals, researchers within guideline development or HTA settings, commercial research organizations, and commissioners of systematic reviews who rely on rigorous methods to make evidence-informed decisions.
One early adopter of Cochrane Interactive Learning says, “This learning tool is absolutely brilliant and of high quality… [and] would offer all researchers a unique opportunity to learn how to conduct high-profile scientific reviews and...undoubtedly enhance our scientific output."
Module 1: Introduction to conducting systematic reviews will remain free to all learners.
Cochrane Authors will have free access to all the Cochrane Interactive Learning modules, as will Cochrane editorial teams and Group staff (see here for a complete list). Residents of WHO Hinari A and B countries will also be eligible for free access.
Other users will be able to take out a paid subscription (personal or institutional), with Cochrane Members eligible for a discount on personal subscriptions.
Find out more:
Call for submissions
Cochrane is piloting a Fast-Track Service. This is a ‘journal-like’ process whereby high-quality, MECIR-compliant reviews that require no major revision, can be submitted directly into an accelerated editorial process. We aim for a turnaround of three months from submission to publication.
Eligibility requirements
This call is open to experienced Cochrane authors who wish to submit a Cochrane Review in 2017. The threshold for acceptance will be high, and we expect submitted manuscripts to be of publishable standard and to meet the specified criteria, found in the Information for Authors and Fast-Track Service webpage. Consequently, authors can expect a higher rejection rate than with the non-Fast-Track submission process. For more information about the threshold for rejection please see Appendix 3 of the proposal.
Submitted reviews should be accompanied by a research protocol, which may be - but does not need to be - a published Cochrane protocol. The protocol must be pre-registered in PROSPERO as a minimum requirement.
Applications
Author teams who wish to apply for the Fast-Track service can submit a short expression of interest using this online form. We will respond within 14 days. Agreement from the relevant review group will be sought before a review can enter the pilot.
Timeline
The pilot is open and will be accepting applications until 31 December 2017.
Cochrane’s organizational Dashboard presents our achievements in key metrics.
We use it as an excellent tool to reflect on our accomplishments on a quarterly basis.
Here are just a few highlights from Q3 2017:
See Cochrane’s Q3 Dashboard in full
Find out more about Cochrane’s organizational Targets for 2017
Cochrane is delighted to announce the official launch of Cochrane Argentina, a new Cochrane centre with a vision to increase the use of best evidence to inform healthcare decision making throughout Argentina.
Cochrane Argentina consists of three institutions working in collaboration: Instituto de Efectividad Clínica y Sanitaria (IECS, Buenos Aires), Instituto Universitario Hospital Italiano (IUHI, Buenos Aires) and Centro Rosarino de Estudios Perinatales (CREP, Santa Fe). Cochrane Argentina’s inaugural Director will be Agustin Ciapponi supported by the leaders of the other two institutions, Juan Franco (IUHI) and Yanina Sguassero (CREP). Together they will offer methodological support, mentoring, and supervision to the region.
Director of Cochrane Argentina, Agustin Ciapponi, says this is a hugely exciting opportunity: “The launch of Cochrane Argentina is very important, both to our country and globally. Producing and increasing the dissemination of the best available information on health care is critical for clinicians and patients everywhere in the world.”
Cochrane’s CEO Mark Wilson, warmly welcomed today’s news: “We are delighted by the launch of Cochrane Argentina and look forward to welcoming more Argentine collaborators to our worldwide network of volunteers. I am sure the new Centre will greatly expand the scope, reach, and impact of Cochrane evidence on health and healthcare decision-making across Argentina and the whole of South America. We are continuing to offer through a sales trial programme one-click access to the Cochrane Library in Argentina; and downloads of Cochrane Systematic Reviews have increased by nearly 900% in the last two years. This is tremendously encouraging as we seek to help clinicians, researchers, policy makers, patients and the general public improve health outcomes across the country.”