Introduction to QES from Conception to Completion

*If your type of ticket is sold out, please join the waitlist or contact us at esi@nuigalway.ie

Background

Health care policy and practice decisions should be based on a synthesis of the global body of evidence rather than relying on individual studies. Evidence Synthesis Ireland promotes evidence based healthcare policy and practice by supporting high quality, relevant systematic reviews including the synthesis of qualitative evidence.

Aim

This workshop provides authors, with an interest in learning more about the QES process, with a comprehensive overview of the approaches to and the methods for qualitative evidence synthesis. It offers an insight to the development of a protocol, introducing participants to, search methods, selecting studies, assessing the quality of studies, data extraction and approaches to synthesis.

Learning outcomes

In this course participants will be enabled to:

• Understand the basic principles of a qualitative evidence synthesis

• Identify the purpose and scope of a QES

• Understand search methods and apply these methods to a search strategy

• Discuss the criteria for selecting studies

• Assess the quality of studies

• Discuss the principles involved in extracting and synthesising findings from a QES.

• Identify the process of application of Grade CERQual to QES findings.

Teaching strategies

The workshop will consist of a mixture of short presentations, led by members of the ESI teaching faculty covering each of the stages of developing a QES, small group activities based around worked examples and exercises and plenary discussions, providing participants with the opportunity to discuss and develop their understanding of the QES process. Participants’ will also be provided with a short reading list in advance of the workshop.

Course content/timetable

08:30 Registration and coffee

09:00 Welcome, introduction of presenters and outline of presentations

09:15 Introducing QES: An overview of QES including key QES types and methods.

09:45 Focusing Your Review Question (Plenary Session and Exercise)

10:30 Break

10:45 Searching for Qualitative Evidence (Guided Search Example)

11:15 Screening and Inclusion processes, Selecting Studies and Extracting Data (Exercise)

12:30 Lunch

13:15 Assessing the Quality of Studies

13:45 Choosing a Method of Synthesis: Overview of Thematic, Framework and Meta-ethnography

14:45 Generating Themes Organising and Interpreting the Findings

15:30 CERQual and Grading the Evidence

16:00 Close

Facilitators

Dr Linda Biesty, Senior Lecturer in Midwifery, School of Nursing & Midwifery, University of Galway. Twitter @LindaBiesty

Dr Pauline Meskell, Senior Lecturer, Dept.. Nursing & Midwifery, University of Limerick. Twitter @MeskellPauline @pauline_meskell