Monday, January 22, 2024

Cochrane is an international, not-for-profit network of clinicians, patients and carers, researchers, and policy-makers creating high-quality healthcare evidence synthesises. Cochrane has a long and rich history of collaborating with healthcare consumers and this is the story of what breast cancer patients experienced when contributing to a Cochrane Review.  

In 1995, Nora Carbine and Liz Lostumbo, both former breast cancer patients, embarked on a transformative journey as attendees of the Leadership, Education, Advocacy, and Development (LEAD) program developed by the National Breast Cancer Coalition (US). Designed to equip patients with the necessary scientific and leadership essentials for becoming proactive advocates, this five-day initiative taught by notable scientists provided a platform for people with breast cancer to amplify their voices.  

One of the founders of LEAD and a course teacher was  Kay Dickerson MD, an epidemiologist and an active Cochrane member. Post-LEAD, Dr. Dickerson encouraged them to form a Journal Club, meeting monthly with her. Initially guided by Dr. Dickerson's article choices, the members eventually took the reins, presenting their findings on breast cancer research articles. Over a transformative two-year period, they developed their skills in scrutinizing research methods, assessing statistical validity, and distinguishing misinformation. Dr. Dickerson proposed to the group – would they be interested in leading on conducting a Cochrane systematic review on mastectomy to prevent breast cancer (prophylactic mastectomy)? 

A determined group of seven breast cancer advocates undertook the challenge to provide accessible information on prophylactic mastectomy for both patients and physicians, emphasizing the importance of informed decision-making. Guided by Dr. Dickerson and Davina Ghersi at Cochrane, they submitted their plan of study (Protocol) to Cochrane in 2000. They would gather at each other’s houses after work or on a Saturday morning and go through article after article, debating which ones to include and which to exclude. Despite one of the original members and driving force, Annette Drummond, becoming seriously ill with a recurrence of breast cancer, other members dropping out, and the abundance of evidence they had to wade through, the Cochrane review published in 2004, four years after this remarkable journey started.  

A unique feature of Cochrane reviews is that they are updated when new evidence is available. Classes in RevMan (Cochrane’s software for preparing and maintaining Cochrane and other systemic reviews) were taken and more people were added to the team, including an experienced reviewer. The first updated review was published in 2010. 

“Actress Angelina Jolie revealing her family history and her procedures coupled with the increasing availability of DNA testing, thrust the topic of mastectomy for breast cancer prevention into the limelight," says Liz Lostumbo. “We worried that women facing the decision of whether to undergo a prophylactic mastectomy might only encounter anecdotes in the popular media. We were particularly concerned about the lack of discussion concerning the quality of life for patients after mastectomy. The Cochrane review and its accompanying plain language summary became our means of addressing the critical gap in knowledge." 

For the third revision in 2018, they brought in more expertise and updated the wording, changing “prophylactic mastectomy” to “risk-reducing mastectomy”. The review is highly cited, has been made into a Cochrane Clinical Answer for clinicians, and has been included in three clinical guidelines. The plain language summary has been translated into 8 languages making it more accessible globally to patients making a decision and has been included in several Wikipedia articles.  

Nora and Liz note that they will hand other future updates to authors who can break the review into parts that ask more concise questions and produce more high-value conclusions – some of this work is already underway.  

“For us, the whole process of being the only group of patients to take on the responsibility of preparing a review and updating it was one of great satisfaction and pride,” says Nora Carbine. “We believe our work has helped thousands of women facing the decision of having a mastectomy to prevent breast cancer by providing evidence they need to be well informed to make their choice. We applaud Cochrane for giving us the opportunity and thank those who supported us in our endeavour.” 

Cochrane is extremely proud of Nora and Liz and all our patient and advocate volunteers. “While the work of Nora and Liz is extraordinary, it embodies the spirit of what Cochrane is trying to achieve.  We are proud to engage with patients to co-produce health evidence that is meaningful, easy to understand, and can be used for decision-making,” explains Richard Morley, Cochrane’s Consumer Engagement Officer. “The Cochrane Consumer Network has played a formal role since 1995 with over 2,000 members and Cochrane has a formal framework for involving patients, carers, and the public. While it’s likely most patients and caregivers aren’t as ambitious to author a Cochrane systematic review, we do hope this story is an inspiration for others to join our work.” From learning about health evidence and making informed health choices to volunteering to read over our plain language summaries on our volunteer hub Cochrane Engage, there are lots of ways you too can make a global impact on health! 

• Read a more detailed account of Nora and Liz’s story 
• Join Cochrane’s work as a patient, carer, or member of the public 

Tuesday, March 19, 2024 Category: The difference we make

A new Cochrane Library Editorial has been published about the history of a recently updated Cochrane review on healthcare decision aids and its implications for practice. There is also an accompanying podcast where you can hear the current lead author explain the need for the review and its latest findings in under four minutes.

Decision aids are one type of tool that can be used to support the process of shared decision making between patients and their health professionals, a key element of person-centred care and health system improvements. A major update to the landmark Cochrane review on decision aids has just been published with an analysis of 209 studies involving 107,698 participants. It provides clear evidence of the benefits of the use of decision aids over usual care across a huge array of health options, ranging from choices about cancer screening to decisions about major elective surgery.

An accompanying editorial describes the influence of this review on practice for over 20 years, with successive updates responding to the changing understanding of decision aids and shared decision-making over this time. The review has been referred to in more than 90 clinical practice guidelines and has been one of the most cited reviews published in the Cochrane Library for over a decade. 

With more convincing evidence of the benefits of using decision aids now available, the editorial discusses implications for practice and highlights some remaining challenges of implementing decision aids. This Cochrane review will continue to be updated and the authors hope to see the findings not only reflected in many guidelines but implemented across many health systems. 

• Read the Cochrane Library editorial 
  Ryan RE, Hill S. Decision aids: challenges for practice when we have confidence in effectiveness. Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews 2024, Issue 1. Art. No.: ED000164. DOI: 10.1002/14651858.ED000164.

• Read the Cochrane review
   Stacey D, Lewis KB, Smith M, Carley M, Volk R, Douglas EE, Pacheco-Brousseau L, Finderup J, Gunderson J, Barry MJ, Bennett CL, Bravo P, Steffensen K, Gogovor A, Graham ID, Kelly SE, Légaré F, Sondergaard H, Thomson R, Trenaman L, Trevena L. Decision aids for people facing health treatment or screening decisions. Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews 2024, Issue 1. Art. No.: CD001431. DOI: 10.1002/14651858.CD001431.pub6.
  
  
  
  
• Listen to the podcast
  Current lead author, Dawn Stacey from the University of Ottawa and Ottawa Hospital Research Institute in Canada, explains the need for the review and its latest findings in under 4 minutes.
  
  

• Evidently Cochrane blog - Decision aids: helping people make better healthcare choices
  When faced with healthcare choices, how do we work out what to do? Decision aids can help, as can good conversations with our clinicians as part of shared decision-making, discussions that take into account clinical expertise, evidence and personal factors such as our preferences and circumstances. This blog includes Joanna’s story of her experience of making an important treatment decision but without the benefit of supportive discussions with her surgeon, plus some Cochrane evidence and useful UK resources.

Monday, January 29, 2024 Category: The difference we make

In celebration of 2024 International Women's Day (IWD), Cochrane is delighted to share a recording of an event showcasing a diverse panel of speakers discussing the IWD 2024 theme of #InspireInclusion

Tiffany Duque, Cochrane US Senior Officer, Panelist, and 2022 winner of the Anne Anderson Award says, "The 2024 IWD event was organized and hosted by our talented Cochrane US Mentees. This marks the third cohort through the Cochrane Mentoring program and the third IWD event. Hailing from 21 different countries, participants range from students to early career professionals, all poised for a bright future within Cochrane. We were delighted that they could once again host this cherished event. Thank you to everyone who attended and we invite everyone to watch the recording."

• #InspireInclusion in health: What is the first step? from Dr Luis Gabriel Cuervo Amore
•   Women in Science: Strategies to Call to Action from Dr Vivian Welch
•  Mentee & Mentor: different languages, different cultures, and how to foster inclusion together from Kehinde Ayomide Agubosim and Dr Karen Gibbs

Paola Andrenacci, Cochrane US Mentor Program Coordinator, and lead for this event, shares her excitement, "We are thrilled about the turn out to this webinar and so happy we can expand the reach with this recording. It was wonderful to bring together this dynamic group to discuss issues of inspiring inclusion in healthcare. Their diverse perspectives and experiences can help us identify barriers to equity and work towards solutions benefiting everyone. I encourage everyone to watch and share the recording! A special thank you to our  Moderators Maya Abdelwahab, Claudia De Santis, Julia Costa-Maria Carolina Isaza."

Related resources:

• VIDEO: 2023 International Women's Day Panel on embracing equality
• VIDEO: 2022 International Women's Day Panel on gender bias in health science and evidence synthesis
• VIDEO: 2021 International Women's Day Panel on diversity in health evidence synthesis
• Celebrating Anne Anderson and Cochrane diversity with new designs: an interview with artist Heather Tubwon
• Cochrane Indonesia’s Director reflects on her continued contributions to maternal and perinatal health and the work of Cochrane

 

Friday, March 8, 2024

Monday, January 15, 2024

Specifications: Permanent – Full Time (1.0 FTE)
Salary:  £36,000 per Annum  
Location: (Remote – Flexible) Ideally based in the UK, Germany or Denmark. Candidates anywhere from the world will be considered; however, Cochrane’s Central Executive Team is only able to offer consultancy contracts outside these countries for 1-Year.
Closing date: 28 January 2024
 
Cochrane is an international charity. For 30 years we have responded to the challenge of making vast amounts of research evidence useful for informing decisions about health. We do this by synthesising research findings and our work has been recognised as the international gold standard for high quality, trusted information.

Cochrane's strength is in its collaborative, global community. We have 110,000+ members and supporters around the world. Though we are spread out across the globe, our shared passion for health evidence unites us. Our Central Executive Team supports this work and is divided into four directorates: Evidence Production and Methods, Publishing and Technology, Development, and Finance and Corporate Services.

The Cochrane Support and Training Officer will work within the Cochrane Support Team, with special responsibility for providing training to internal Central Executive Team colleagues, Cochrane authors, and Cochrane Group staff. Training will focus on new Review Manager (RevMan) project and portfolio management features in 2024. The role also includes ongoing internal training responsibilities.   

Don’t have every single qualification? We know that some people are less likely to apply for a job unless they are a perfect match. At Cochrane, we’re not looking for “perfect matches.” We’re looking to welcome people to our diverse, inclusive, and passionate workplace. So, if you’re excited about this role but don’t have every single qualification, we encourage you to apply anyway. Whether it’s this role or another one, you may be just the right candidate.

Our organization is built on four core values: Collaboration: Underpins everything we do, locally and globally. Relevant: The right evidence at the right time in the right format. Integrity: Independent and transparent. Quality: Reviewing and improving what we do, maintaining rigour and trust.  

You can expect:  

• An opportunity to truly impact health globally.  
• A flexible work environment  
• A comprehensive onboarding experiences.
• An environment where people feel welcome, heard, and included, regardless of their differences.

Cochrane welcomes applications from a wide range of perspectives, experiences, locations, and backgrounds; diversity, equity and inclusion are key to our values.

How to apply

• For further information on the role and how to apply
• The deadline to receive your application is 28th January 2024.
• The supporting statement should indicate why you are applying for the post, and how far you meet the requirements, using specific examples. 
• Read our Recruitment Privacy Statement

Tuesday, January 23, 2024 Category: Jobs

Thursday, January 11, 2024

Thursday, January 11, 2024

Wednesday, January 10, 2024

Wednesday, January 10, 2024

Cochrane warmly invites you to submit abstracts for oral presentations, posters, and workshops for the second Global Evidence Summit (GES) 2024. Hosted by global leaders in evidence synthesis and evidence-based practice, including Cochrane, JBI, Guidelines International Network (GIN), and The Campbell Collaboration, the summit is set to take place in the historical city of Prague, Czech Republic, from 10 to 13 September 2024, with satellite meetings on 9 September 2024.

This collaborative effort between esteemed organizations represents a unique opportunity for professionals across various sectors, such as health, education, social justice, the environment, and climate change, to engage in discussions about producing, summarizing, and disseminating evidence to inform policy and practice. Abstract and workshop submissions will be accepted until the extended deadline of  6 March 2024.

Dr. Karla Soares-Weiser, Vice Chair of the GES Scientific Committee and Cochrane Editor in Chief, extends an invitation to the Cochrane community, emphasizing the importance of their participation in this global event: 

As we open the doors for abstract submissions to the second Global Evidence Summit, I am thrilled to invite the Cochrane community to contribute to the exchange of ideas that will shape the future of evidence-based practice. This summit, uniting leading organizations in evidence synthesis, is a testament to our commitment to improving lives worldwide through the power of credible evidence. I encourage all Cochrane members and supporters to submit their abstracts for oral presentations, posters, or workshops, and join us in Prague for this exceptional opportunity to collaborate, learn, and drive positive change.

The themes for GES 2024 include:

• Sustainable development agenda
• The importance of research integrity making evidence accessible
• Power of synergy in evidence synthesis & synthesis products
• Evidence translation & implementation
• Advocating for greater evidence communication & use of evidence
• From global evidence to local impact
  
  
  
  

Catherine Spencer, Cochrane's CEO, emphasizing the significance of the GES in fostering synergies and knowledge sharing within the global evidence community:

Our recent Cochrane Colloquium in London was a testament to the vibrant spirit of the Cochrane community. In 2024, we are excited to co-host the second Global Evidence Summit alongside our esteemed partners. GES provides a crucial platform to address vital issues across sectors, while showcasing the incredible methods and work of Cochrane. I warmly invite all Cochrane members to participate actively and submit abstracts. Let's unite for #GES2024 and contribute to advancing evidence-based practice globally!

Abstracts and workshop submissions are open until 6 March 2024 with notifications of acceptances happening on 30 April 2024. 

• Oral and poster abstract details
• Workshop submission details
• Visit the GES Website

Thursday, February 29, 2024

Specifications: Permanent – Full Time
Salary:  £45,000 per Annum  
Location: (Remote – Flexible) Ideally based in the UK, Germany or Denmark. Candidates anywhere from the world will be considered; however, Cochrane’s Central Executive Team is only able to offer consultancy contracts outside these countries for 1-Year.
Closing date: 29 January 2024

Cochrane is an international charity. For 30 years we have responded to the challenge of making vast amounts of research evidence useful for informing decisions about health. We do this by synthesising research findings and our work has been recognised as the international gold standard for high quality, trusted information.

Cochrane's strength is in its collaborative, global community. We have 110,000+ members and supporters around the world. Though we are spread out across the globe, our shared passion for health evidence unites us. Our Central Executive Team supports this work and is divided into four directorates: Evidence Production and Methods, Publishing and Technology, Development, and Finance and Corporate Services.

We are seeking a self-starter; an experienced and energetic team member with a proven track-record of successfully securing five and six figure gifts from a wide range of donors. You have experience of fundraising from high-value Global trusts and foundations, as well as from government or multilateral donors (e.g. the United Kingdom’s Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office and the European Union).  

Don’t have every single qualification? We know that some people are less likely to apply for a job unless they are a perfect match. At Cochrane, we’re not looking for “perfect matches.” We’re looking to welcome people to our diverse, inclusive, and passionate workplace. So, if you’re excited about this role but don’t have every single qualification, we encourage you to apply anyway. Whether it’s this role or another one, you may be just the right candidate.

Our organization is built on four core values: Collaboration: Underpins everything we do, locally and globally. Relevant: The right evidence at the right time in the right format. Integrity: Independent and transparent. Quality: Reviewing and improving what we do, maintaining rigour and trust.  

You can expect: 

• An opportunity to truly impact health globally  
• A flexible work environment  
• A comprehensive onboarding experiences
• An environment where people feel welcome, heard, and included, regardless of their differences

Cochrane welcomes applications from a wide range of perspectives, experiences, locations and backgrounds; diversity, equity and inclusion are key to our values.

How to apply

• For further information on the role and how to apply, please click here
• The deadline to receive your application is 29 January 2024.
• The supporting statement should indicate why you are applying for the post, and how far you meet the requirements, using specific examples. 
• Read our Recruitment Privacy Statement

Thursday, January 18, 2024 Category: Jobs

Cochrane is proud to share inductees to the lifetime and emeritus memberships, recognizing the extraordinary contributions of individuals who have made an exceptional, long-standing contribution to Cochrane’s work and leadership.

Cochrane's strength is in its collaborative, global community. Over the last 30 years, our members and supporters from more than 130 countries have worked together to produce credible, accessible health information and help inform health decision-making. Though we are spread out across the globe, our shared passion for health evidence unites us.

Cochrane’s Membership scheme helps reward everyone who helps provide produce and disseminate Cochrane evidence, as well as provide leadership for our strategic goals. Membership is a valuable addition to résumés, gives you voting rights, and opens opportunities for getting involved in governance and learning opportunities.

We are proud to recognise extraordinary contributions to Cochrane with Emeritus and Lifetime Memberships. These will be awarded to those who have contributed to Cochrane’s success over many years and are now ending their active time with Cochrane.

Emeritus members:
Individuals who made a significant long-standing contribution to the leadership of the organization.

• Gerd Antes
• Hilda Bastian
• Sally Bell-Syer
• Xavier Bonfill
• Martin Burton
• Teresa Anna Cantisani
• Iain Chalmers
• Chris Champion
• Nicky Cullum
• Kay Dickersin
• Gladys Faba
• Zbys Fedorowicz
• Paul Garner
• Robin Grant
• Muir Gray
• Jini Hetherington
• Sophie Hill
• Marguerite Koster
• Malinee Laopaiboon
• Anne Lyddiatt
• Petra Macaskill
• Fergus Macbeth
• Chris Mavergames
• Ann Marie Møller
• Nathan Pace
• Nandi Siegfried
• Prathap Tharyan
• Mario Tristan
• Christopher Williams
• Hywel Williams

Lifetime members:
Individuals at all levels of the organization who have made an exceptional, long-standing commitment to Cochrane's work.

• Marty Chaplin
• Linda Clare
• Leon Flicker
• Patricia Graves
• Peter Herbison
• Anne Lethaby
• Fiona Rowe
• Karen Steingart
• Maoling Wei

Emeritus members

Individuals who made a significant long-standing contribution to the leadership of the organization.

Gerd Antes

"Cochrane Germany, Cochrane Switzerland and Cochrane Austria are sending  congratulations to Gerd on his well-deserved emeritus status. Throughout his career, Gerd has been a driving force in the advancement of evidence-based healthcare and critical thinking, particularly in the German-speaking countries. Our collaboration spans many years, and we have greatly enjoyed working with him. We are so very pleased to see Cochrane honor his life-time contributions. Without Gerd’s support, Cochrane Germany, Cochrane Sitzerland and Cochrane Austria would not be where they are today. Vielen Dank, Gerd!"

Joerg Meerpohl, Erik von Elm and Gerald Gartlehner

Hilda Bastian 

"Hilda's impact on Cochrane is undeniable. Her advocacy for transparent reporting, rigorous analysis, and clear communication of research findings has greatly enriched Cochrane’s commitment to evidence-based health and care. Moreover, her dedication to demystifying scientific research has helped bridging the gap between researchers and the public. By fostering a culture of informed decision-making grounded in robust evidence, Hilda Bastian’s contributions have elevated the standards of evidence and ultimately enhanced patient care worldwide.

Hilda has become one of Cochrane's most influential and respected critical friends. She has consistently championed consumer involvement and has pushed Cochrane hard on its commitments to open access, transparency and patient engagement. She has provided advice to many people over the years, and made a virtue out of dispassionate (...and sometimes very passionate...) critique."

Sally Bell-Syer 

"In 1999, I was undertaking a series of systematic reviews at the University of York when I was approached by Nicky Cullum, the Co-ordinating Editor of the Cochrane Wounds Group, and asked if I would be interested in joining their team as their Trial Search Co-ordinator (now information Specialist). This was an exciting time to join, as the Wounds Group was growing and developing with new authors becoming engaged in review writing. After three years I took over the Managing Editor (ME) role and became actively involved in supporting and training authors in systematic review methodology whilst continuing to be involved in collaborating on writing reviews for both the Wounds and the Skin Group.

I remained in this post until my retirement from the University. At that point I joined the Managing Editor Support team and continued to enjoy working with all of my colleagues in the review groups for several more years.

I have far too many highlights of being involved with Cochrane to mention! Overall, I think being part of such an amazing organisation which was built on hard work, vision and time given voluntarily in working towards a common goal. But in particular the ME community who are (in my personal view) the keystone of Cochrane, supporting the authors producing the reviews that is the Cochrane Library of today.

We worked hard and had a lot of fun but were fundamental to many of the organisational developments; included forming the MEs’ Executive, running training courses and establishing documentation to support the editorial role and then achieving funding for the ME Support team.

Special highlights – the time spent with the MEs’ Executive, travelling to Colloquia, and having the opportunity of meeting face-to-face, my term representing MEs on the Steering Group (now Governing Board) and of course being awarded the Chris Silagy Prize, nominated by my peers.

The evidence-based healthcare movement has grown massively and Cochrane is at its very core. The pioneering vision and work undertaken to establish Cochrane was ground-breaking. Cochrane Reviews have developed over time and represent a resource which is highly respected and accessible to all. They have relevance to every aspect of society whether you are a healthcare provider, a carer, a patient, a researcher or policy maker. The truly international base of the organisation is a real strength as well as its diversity and inclusivity. It has stayed true to its purpose and mission whilst creating a cohesive and supportive community.

Over the years I have introduced many people to take up positions within the Cochrane organisation and many of them are still there. The author community, however, has evolved dramatically and Cochrane through its partnership with Wiley has meant that the authoring process is much more aligned to that of a medical journal. This development has been an organic change over many years and has embraced the emerging technologies. Support is now available in a wealth of online support and training materials which are available to all. To contribute to a fabulous resource such as the Cochrane Library is a rewarding experience for anyone wanting to contribute to evidence-based healthcare. Anyone interested in getting involved, be they authors, consumers, healthcare providers, researchers, health care professionals and from any country in the world can be assured they will receive a warm welcome."

 

"For more than 20 years, Sally Bell-Syer made a huge contribution to the work of Cochrane through her work with the Wounds Group and as an advocate for Managing Editors (MEs). She sat on the Cochrane Steering Committee, set up and convened MEs Executive. Also, after identifying the need for specific mentoring and support for her ME colleagues she put together the concept of the ME Support Team. Once established Sally spent six years ably assisting and mentoring MEs, both new and old, to take on the challenges and demands of an ME. While working for Cochrane Sally went above and beyond her role and is a very deserved of an Emeritus Membership."

Gail Quinn and Clare Jess

 

Xavier Bonfill  

"In 1994 I attended my first Colloquium in Hamilton (Canada) and began promoting the Cochrane Collaboration in Spain, initially under the help and supervision of Alessandro Liberati (Ɨ 2012). In 1997 the Spanish Cochrane Centre was registered and I became its Director. In 2000, the Centre was registered as Iberoamerican Cochrane Centre (IbCC) because we assumed the responsibility of promoting and coordinating the Cochrane activities in the Latin American Spanish-speaking countries besides Spain and Portugal.

I was the director of the IbCC since then and until early 2023. We established he Iberoamerican Cochrane Network formed by people from Spain and Latin America and many associate and affiliate centres based in health care centres, research institutes, universities and government bodies. I have co-authored more than 30 Cochrane reviews published in the Cochrane Library. I was the coordinating editor of the Lung Cancer Group between 1998 and 2003 and was a member of the Cochrane Governing Board for the period 2019 - 2021.

We started translating the Cochrane reviews into Spanish in 2000 and publishing them in the platform that we created: the Biblioteca Cochrane Plus (BCP). Starting in 2003 until now the Spanish Ministry of Health has maintained a national subscription to the BCP, similarly to what has happened in other Iberoamerican countries in different periods. The usage of the BCP has been always very high (in millions). It was fully integrated into the enhanced Cochrane Library in 2019.

I would distinguish two dimensions of Cochrane impact: the first, more technical and material, has consisted in the elaboration of a huge amount of documented evidence about a great diversity of interventions, not only on the most conventional ones, distributed in different formats and languages. The development of methodologies in evidence synthesis has also been dramatic and a lot of people over the world have benefited from that. Many health care individual decisions and recommendations included in CPGs have been more appropriate thanks to the existence of Cochrane materials and methods.

The second dimension is social: the existence of a worldwide network based on a Collaboration with idealistic, democratic and generous principles, open to anyone from any country and background, including patients and citizens, has been a landmark by itself and contributed to demonstrate the kind of pathway that our world should follow if aspires to peace and harmony.

Cochrane has new challenges today, which are different from those existing 30 years ago. There are also many more opportunities, particularly in the field of information technologies. But I think the principles that led to constituting the Cochrane Collaboration continue to be still relevant and valid, and they should be well known and assumed consequently. I would add that efforts must be devoted for maintaining and promoting Cochrane as an organisation really global, participative, multilingual, and inclusive."

 

"Xavier's contribution to Cochrane has been impressive, right from the beginning of his involvement in 1994. His initial enthusiasm for Cochrane's ideal was soon complemented by his vision and drive to consolidate Cochrane first in Spain and soon after also in the Spanish-speaking world. Thanks to his inspiring and generous leadership style, he created the necessary complicities to establish the Iberoamerican Cochrane Network, a vibrant network that still endures today. We feel indebted to his legacy and are grateful for his hard and constant work which encourages us to continue with enthusiam in this new stage of great challenges and opportunities."

Gerard Urrútia Cuchí and Eva Madrid

 

Martin Burton 

"Martin’s contribution to Cochrane extends over 25 years, beginning in 1998 when he became the founding Co-ordinating Editor of Cochrane ENT. In 2011 he stepped into the role of Director of Cochrane UK and has served as a member of the Cochrane Governing Board 2014 in a number of roles, becoming a Co-Chair of the board in 2017. Martin has led Cochrane UK through a significant strategic change and has supported the team to achieve a balance of serving its UK stakeholders, supporting the Cochrane community, and contributing to the global organization and evidence community. He has supported the team at Cochrane UK to develop and maintain an innovative dissemination programme, contributing to the development and implementation of Cochrane’s Knowledge Translation Framework and supporting our stakeholders in the use of health evidence. He's also shown an exceptional commitment to promoting the understanding and use of evidence among students and young people.Martin is moving on from Cochrane to embark on a new and exciting appointment as Master of Sidney Sussex College Cambridge from September 2023."
Therese Docherty and Sarah Chapman

Teresa Anna Cantisani

"I have been involved in Cochrane since 1998, thanks to Livia Candelise, Professor of Neurology in Milan, Peter Sandercook, Professor of Neurology in Edinburgh and member of the Cochrane Stroke Group, Stefano Ricci, Neurologist - member of the Cochrane Stroke Group, and Alessandro Liberati, founder and promoter of Cochrane Italia. From the moment I joined, I was enthusiastic about this large international network, which combines rigor in producing syntheses of the literature on health interventions with a focus on people with ill health, their carers and is committed to working to achieve global health 

I was very happy to be part of the mixed team that won the football tournament during the Seventh International Cochrane Colloquium in Rome in 1999.

In 2000, I was an active member of the team involved in the registration of the Cochrane Neurological Field, led by Livia Candelise from then until 2006. I was the Director of the Cochrane Neurological Field, now the Cochrane Neurological Sciences Field, from 2007 to the present.

I'm a clinical neurologist and this role has had a very significant influence on my work with Cochrane, because I've always felt that it's very important for clinicians to learn how to critically appraise the medical literature and it is of great value to bridge the gap between research and clinical practice.

Since its inception the intention of our field has been to build a bridge between Cochrane products in the field of neurology and end users (students, clinicians, consumers, policy makers, etc.), but not only from Cochrane to end users, but also vice versa, with the aim of a continuous exchange of ideas and stimuli.

My team and I have tried to achieve this goal through many initiatives, such as publishing sections, Cochrane Corners, in neurological journals, creating a Textbook of Cochrane Neurological reviews, participating in priority setting processes of neurological Cochrane groups, organising workshops at major neurological conferences and also stand-alone workshops.  

Special efforts have been made to train medical students and neurology residents, in particular through the organisation of face-to-face and online schools, where clinical and methodological aspects are continuously explored. With great satisfaction, some of the participants have also become authors of Cochrane reviews.

Cochrane is facing new challenges today, so it is increasingly important that young people get to know it, appreciate it, and participate in its global and extraordinarily inclusive world."

Iain Chalmers

Iaian played a pivotal role in the founding of Cochrane, revolutionizing the way healthcare information is disseminated and accessed. In the early 1990s, Chalmers recognized the need for a comprehensive database of high-quality evidence to guide medical decision-making. Working as the first director of the National Perinatal Epidemology Unit in Oxford, he led the development of Effective Care in Pregnancy and Childbirth, one of the first collections of systematic reviews of health evidence. Inspired by Archie Cochrane's influential book "Effectiveness and Efficiency: Random Reflections on Health Services," Chalmers envisioned a global collaboration that would systematically review and synthesize research evidence on topics across healthcare.

In 1993, to bring his vision to life, Iain convened a meeting of nearly a hundred colleagues who agreed to establish the Cochrane Collaboration. Motivated by the enthusiastic reception given to the digital preparation, publication and updating of systematic reviews of interventions in pregnancy and childbirth, others embarked on the preparation, publication and promotion of systematic reviews across all of healthcare. The early versions of the Cochrane Collaboration's work were distributed on floppy discs and then CD-ROMs, reflecting the technological landscape of the time, and eventually used the world wide web, thus making evidence-based information more accessible to healthcare professionals and researchers worldwide. This innovative approach to assembling and disseminating evidence was rapidly recognised as an important innovation and led to the expansion and development of the Cochrane Collaboration into the globally recognized organization it is today.

"Iain Chalmers' pioneering efforts to improve health care decision-making in pregnancy and childbirth, and subsequent role as a co-founder of the Cochrane Collaboration have profoundly impacted the practice of evidence-based medicine, globally.  His dedication to rigorous research methodology, transparency, and fostering wider participation and collaboration has left an indelible mark on many of us.  Through his vision and commitment Iain has inspired researchers and clinicians around the world to strive for excellence and encouraged a more inclusive and collaborative approach to generating and utilizing evidence in healthcare."

Karla Soares-Weiser and Jimmy Volmink

Chris Champion 

"My Cochrane journey started by working in Cochrane Review Groups, where I spent five years learning about methods and contributing to the technology development agenda in Cochrane. During this time I contributed to Cochrane at an organisational level through chairing committees and serving on executives, but I wanted to do more. When I saw the launch of Cochrane’s Strategy to 2020, I saw huge potential to increase the reach and impact of the Collaboration and I wanted to be part of making that a reality. This led me to take on various executive roles including working in the CEO’s Office, where I was fortunate to work with and learn from Mark Wilson, and then later managing a large department focussed on services to the Cochrane Community. 

My experience of being part of the Cochrane Review Group community always grounded me in the day to day challenges people face in delivering Cochrane’s mission around the globe and it also made me appreciate the importance of the vast network of people without which there is no Cochrane. I consider myself fortunate to have worked closely with a wide range of people in Cochrane all the way from founding members such as Iain Chalmers and Jini Hetherington through to the early career professionals network who represent the next generation of leaders in Cochrane. Supporting all of those committed and inspirational individuals that make Cochrane what it is was what motivated me in my daily Cochrane work. 

I have always been extremely proud to tell people about Cochrane and the impact it has had on the world and I am delighted to have been nominated as an Emeritus Member, so that I can continue to be considered part of this prestigious community for many years to come."

Nicky Cullum

Nicky is one of the founding members of Cochrane and led Cochrane Wounds from 1995 to 2023, providing decision makers in this field with robust, relevant and timely evidence for 28 years. Nicky was also elected to the Governing body in 2018 where she served until 2021.

Nicky’s contribution to Cochrane is hard to overstate: her methodological knowledge and skill alongside a terrifying level of attention to detail and clarity of communication produced reviews that have been a benchmark for excellence for many years. Nicky has remained an enthusiastic early adopter of innovation in systematic review methodology, constantly working at the vanguard of methodological development over her long Cochrane career, aiming to product the most rigorous work possible.

In addition to providing decision makers with reliable and up-to-date systematic review evidence for over a quarter of a century, Nicky’s work in Cochrane has influenced the careers of numerous individuals. Nicky has built capacity for review conduct and evidence based healthcare more broadly across disciplines but particularly in nursing. Nicky has been a longstanding and hugely effective and impactful advocate and representative of Cochrane. She has tirelessly championed Cochrane’s values and work making a huge contribution to the development of Cochrane, its global reputation and its impact.

Kay Dickersin

"I got involved with the Cochrane Collaboration as Iain Chalmers said that he would like to do for ALL of medicine what he had done for the perinatal field. I, with many others, signed on then and there.

My personal highlight of my involvement is the annual Colloquiums. Every year, I would be fed up with the world, and then I went to the annual meeting. At the Colloquium I would then be inspired by all the idealistic men and women from all over the world who were engaged in making the dream a reality. It really was a collaboration.

The work Cochrane Collaboration do is so important. Who else should do it than someone who knows how to do the work systematically and well?"

 

“We are beyond thrilled that Dr. Kay Dickersin, Professor Emerita at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, is being recognized as an Emeritus Member of the Cochrane Collaboration. Dr. Dickersin was a founding member of the Cochrane Collaboration in 1993 and has been a strong advocate for Cochrane’s vision and methodology ever since. Her pioneering work on publication bias in the 1980s stimulated her multiple efforts to rectify the situation. She was a leader of initiatives for indexing randomized trials, development of search filters for identifying randomized trials, and trial registration. Dr. Dickersin deserves recognition for her immense contributions and commitment to Cochrane, and to the methodology of evidence synthesis that underpins every Cochrane systematic review.”

Tianjing Li and Bobbi Scherer

Gladys Faba 

"Gladys was one of the founders of the first Cochrane Mexican group in 1999, in the National Institute of Public Health. She served as the director of that group for almost a decade and also coordinated the rest of the Mexican Cochrane groups from 2003 to 2006.

She also served in the Cochrane Board from 2017 to 2021.

Dr. Faba has been a leader in advocating for the use of evidence and Cochrane systematic reviews to inform health policy in Mexico."

Giordano Pérez-Gaxiola and Leticia Barajas

Zbys Fedorowicz

Paul Garner

"Paul has made a truly extraordinary contribution to Cochrane. This contribution spans from the formation of the Cochrane Infectious Diseases Group and his subsequent leadership of this Group, to his significant contributions to methods and Cochrane policies, and his enthusiastic involvement in the wider Cochrane community. Throughout his time with Cochrane, he has embraced the spirit of collaboration drawing new authors from all over the globe into evidence synthesis and building capacity in this field. His nose for high-priority topics has led to the production of some of the most impactful Cochrane reviews which add to his hugely impressive portfolio of work. His passion for evidence synthesis has been infectious (excuse the pun!) for many early career researchers, and he continues to be a hugely supportive mentor and friend to many within the Cochrane Collaboration."

Deirdre Walshe and Tilly Fox

Robin Grant

"Robin's association with GNOC goes back to the very early years of the Group when he took over as Editor responsible for the neuro-oncology titles working alongside the founding Co-ordinating Editor Chris Williams. In 2011 this association was formalised when the Neuro-oncology satellite was established to accommodate the increasing number of Systematic Reviews (SRs) in this area. It was at this point that Robin became a joint Co-ordinating Editor and the Group’s name was changed to Gynaecological, Neuro-oncology and Orphan Cancers. Robin’s role as an NHS Consultant Neurologist at the Edinburgh Centre for neuro-oncology (ECNO) as well as his committee roles in various international societies dedicated to advancing the research in neuro-oncology (most notably as President of the European Association of Neuro-oncology) allowed him to expand the Groups contacts and Editors on an international scale.

Robin is an excellent communicator and his enthusiasm is infectious, especially when building and maintain outstanding working relationships and effectively managing associations with a diverse range of individuals such as academic editors, authors, senior academics/clinicians, policy officers, allied charities, researchers and health consumers. This was particularly evident during the James Lind Alliance Neuro-oncology PSP, which identified and promoted the clinical research questions for SRs and future topics for clinical trials of greatest importance to children and adults with tumours arising in the brain or spinal cord. These were then translated and published as Cochrane reviews covering eight out of the top ten identified uncertainties. Working alongside Jo Morrison, Robin is a hugely supportive, positive and innovative colleague for the GNOC team as well as an ambassador for the wider Cochrane community."

Gail Quinn and Clare Jess

Muir Gray

"As Director of R&D for the Anglia and Oxford Region of the NHS I was one of the joint funders of the UK Cochrane Centre and one Saturday morning Iain told me that he had had an idea and that was to set up a Cochrane Collaboration, and that one advantage of the name was that we could use the same logo that David Mostyn had prepared for the Cochrane Centre

A personal highlight of mine were the volunteers we recruited from Oxford clubs like the Headington Bridge Club to scan journal title pages to identifiy possible randomised controlled trials

The impact Cochrane has had on Evidence Based Medicine in part was result of recruiting Dave Sackett as Professor of EBM to Oxford , where he also took the Chair of the Collaboration. We can say that the Collaboration created the way EBM to move from being an excellent McMaster initiative to broaden to become EBHC world wide

My advice to someone interested in getting involved with Cochrane - Join the Revolution!"

 

"We are delighted to present this prestigious award to Sir Muir Gray to honour his invaluable contributions as one of Cochrane's founders and chief visionaries. Sir Muir's dedication to Cochrane spans decades, from his instrumental role as the original Company Secretary and member of the original Steering Group to his ongoing engagement evidence synthesis. His unwavering commitment to promoting value in healthcare and inspiring countless individuals to participate as contributors and supporters makes him a true champion of Cochrane's mission."

Karla Soares-Weiser and Martin Burton

Jini Hetherington 

"I initially got involved with Cochrane as I was Administrator of the National Perinatal Epidemiology Unit when Iain Chalmers was Director. In 1992 Iain took me, and several others with him when he established the Cochrane Centre, which later became the UK Cochrane Centre when the organisation became worldwide.

I have loved meeting and working with people from all over the world. Sharing the common cause of contributing towards evidence-based health care for the final twenty years of my working life gave me purpose and self-respect, as well as many friends of many different nationalities. I couldn’t have wished for anything better.

One of the Collaboration’s major strengths is that people with vastly differing skills and experience from each other all have something to offer. It is the mix of interests, abilities and nationalities that makes a Cochrane job so interesting and rewarding. I would just say, “Go for it!”"

 

 "We are thrilled to present the prestigious Emeritus Award to honour Jini Hetherington for her extraordinary contributions to Cochrane. Jini's invaluable involvement in the early stages of Cochrane, including her instrumental role in the development of the Cochrane Pregnancy and Childbirth Database, which later transformed into the renowned Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews/Cochrane Library, is truly commendable. As Cochrane's first administrator, her remarkable dedication in shaping crucial processes and policies, coupled with her unwavering support and warm hospitality extended to colleagues from around the world, exemplify her exceptional commitment to the Cochrane community. Jini's exceptional contributions make her highly deserving of this prestigious award."

Karla Soares-Weiser and Martin Burton

Sophie Hill 

"I first heard of Cochrane in the mid-1990s. After participating in a clinical guidelines committee for Australia’s National Health and Medical Research Council, I gave a paper at the 1996 Adelaide Cochrane Colloquium on ‘The liquorice all-sorts approach: review and synthesis of a mixed bag of research.’ This led to an invitation from Professor Chris Silagy to give a paper on consumers and evidence at a Melbourne seminar and my interest in the challenges of communication and evidence was appreciated by officers in the Victorian Department of Health. I was subsequently invited in 2000 to put in a proposal to take on the Coordinating Editor role of the Cochrane Consumers and Communication Group. I was influenced by a wonderful book by Light and Pillemer, titled ‘Summing Up’ (1984). The key message for me from this book was how can we make better decisions at a societal level informed by what we have already learned from reliable research. The applied nature of this question had a big impact on my thinking.

I have many happy memories of my involvement with Cochrane. Building an evidence base is a tremendous feeling of accomplishment. But so is working to make the organisation strong and productive and I had several roles where I could do this. I have been part of many wonderful teams of people working locally and around the world to contribute evidence to better decision making by consumers, health professionals and governments. The highlight of my career was working closely with the Victorian Department of Health to incorporate evidence on communication and participation into policy making. Cochrane has had many impacts on health care and health research. In the Cochrane Consumers and Communication Group, we were able to show that person-centred care really matters! There is strong and reliable evidence to demonstrate the importance of communication with patients, and that it can be done well, and it can be done poorly. Communication was long neglected by the health system. If Covid has shown us anything, it is how important communication has become, and obviously it is going to remain a critical challenge well into the future.

Cochrane is first and foremost a wonderful network of people around the world, all doing interesting things. It links research, health care and advocacy."

"We are very proud to have nominated Sophie Hill for Emeritus Membership of Cochrane and congratulate her on receipt of the award in recognition of her enormous contributions to Cochrane both internationally and within Australia. Over many years, Sophie has through her leadership, mentorship and many positions made an extraordinary contribution to Cochrane’s impact, methods, relevance and standing. All the while, Sophie has approached her roles in Cochrane as she approaches life: with integrity, intelligence, humility and humour. We are really fortunate to have worked closely with Sophie and incredibly pleased to see her work within Cochrane acknowledged in this way."

Rebecca Ryan and Sally Green

Marguerite Koster

"I first became acquainted with the Cochrane community at the 2008 Colloquium in Freiberg, where I was asked to give a plenary presentation on “Perspectives on Cochrane Reviews from a User in the U.S.”  As an evidence analyst/methodologist and manager of a unit within a large U.S.-based health care organization (Kaiser Permanente Southern California) that had been relying on Cochrane systematic reviews to inform clinical decision making, this offered an opportunity to connect with the Cochrane community and emphasize that health care organizations value the work they do.  Since that time, I’ve attended almost all annual Cochrane colloquia and continue to emphasize the importance of Cochrane reviews in the development of guidance by health care delivery organizations.  In 2016, I was appointed to the Cochrane Governing Board as one of two external members (along with Catherine Marshall), and it was my privilege to serve the Cochrane community in this capacity for six years.  I respect and admire everyone who is a part of the Cochrane community and have enjoyed working with the Cochrane Future of Evidence Synthesis workgroup for the past few years.  I look forward to continuing my support for Cochrane, its mission and scientific strategy in the coming years."

Malinee Laopaiboon 

Malinee is a biostatistician who began her involvement with Cochrane when she worked with Iain Chalmers at the NPEU in Oxford in the 1980s. She was a co-founder of the Thai Cochrane Network (now Cochrane Thailand) and has been a long-standing and active contributor on many Cochrane reviews. Malinee played a major role in training a large group of systematic reviewers in Thailand and SE Asia, and worked tirelessly in supervising and supporting many Cochrane review authors. She also mentored successors in her department to continue working with Cochrane and providing methods support and advice to Thai authors. Malinee’s charming and kind personality was appreciated by all those she worked with and supported.

Pisake Lumbiganon and SteveMcDonald

Anne Lyddiatt

"Years ago people who had questions about their treatment of medical conditions relied on information obtained from their doctor, family, friends, and some public information. This was at times helpful but not always and often didn’t answer the questions of most concern to the patient. It was this atmosphere in which the Cochrane reviews made their entrance - and were received by many who had questions and concerns about their treatment. I can remember people telling me that they didn’t have a medical background and were afraid it would just confuse them more. The plain language summary was a solution to that! Over the years I have referred many to the reviews and I know this has had an effect as they referred family and friend to the site.

Personally I have made many friends within the Cochrane family. People I knew I could call on when needed. They were always there and willing to answer my questions no matter how “dumb” I felt they were. I am not closely connected with Cochrane at this point but certainly tell people who are interested in becoming involved to contact the group or someone I know who is still closely connected.

I think at this time in health care we are dealing with a crisis - not just here in Canada but world-wide. People are desperate for information that will help them make decisions. Many are without a GP and I shudder to think of the info they are receiving from friends, family, and many of the unreliable sources of medical information available to us. I see this as an opportunity to make people more aware of evidence based medicine through public awareness and education by all various methods available."

 

 "We are thrilled to congratulate Anne on being recognized as an Emeritus Member of the Cochrane Collaboration! Anne’s infinite enthusiasm and drive to improve health research and health care for arthritis patients has seen her take on a wide number of appointments as a patient research partner or representative locally, provincially, nationally and internationally. Perhaps more importantly, she has not only championed patient engagement in all of her work, but has been a steadfast, generous and selfless mentor to countless others she has engaged with or recruited. She has quite simply been the quiet but driving force behind successful patient engagement globally."

Peter Tugwell and Catherine Hofstetter

Petra Macaskill

"Prof Petra Macaskill has exemplified remarkable collegiality, expertise and dedication during about two decades of service to Cochrane in various roles including co-convenor of the Screening and Diagnostic Tests Methods Group (SDTMG), Handbook author, review author, editor and statistical editor.

In 2004 Petra was invited by the German Cochrane Centre to participate in an international meeting of methodologists held in Freiburg. This was a pivotal meeting of the Cochrane Diagnostic Test Accuracy (DTA) Reviews Working Group that subsequently led to the development and implementation of Cochrane DTA reviews in the Cochrane Library with the first review published in 2008. Petra became co-convenor of SDTMG (with Constantine Gatsonis) in 2004, continuing even after retirement till she resigned in 2023. Petra has been instrumental in the development of methods for systematic reviews and meta-analyses of diagnostic test accuracy and the well cited meta-analysis chapter of Cochrane’s Handbook for Systematic Reviews of Diagnostic Test Accuracy.

Petra has been a statistical editor for Cochrane Kidney and Transplant (previously Cochrane Renal Group) since 2004 and has continued in this role. She was also an active editor in the Cochrane Diagnostic Test Accuracy (DTA) Editorial Team from its inception in 2008 till 2023. Petra is a very warm and welcoming colleague, supporting and nurturing the development of junior colleagues (including both Prof Yemisi Takwoingi and Dr Mariska Leeflang, current SDTMG co-convenors), and always happy to invite overseas colleagues to Sydney and to her home. In true Cochrane spirit, Petra has been generous with her time and fostered an environment of collaboration and inclusion, inspiring and empowering those around her to strive for excellence"

Yemisi Takwoingi and Mariska Leeflang

Fergus Macbeth 

"As a good enthusiast of evidence-based medicine and someone who has fully embodied Cochrane principles, Fergus has made an extraordinary contribution to Cochrane, far beyond what was expected of his role as Co-ordinating Editor of the Lung Cancer Group for over twenty years. Making the most of his equanimous approach, he worked with the Cochrane Council as Co-Chair for some years and was also co-Funding arbiter, revising the Conflict-of-Interest policy. He also contributed to the Cochrane Cancer Alliance and has authored and peer-reviewed many Cochrane Reviews. Beyond his outstanding contribution, his sensitive attitude towards other languages and cultures and his genuine willingness to help people learn and grow are excellent qualities that he’s shared during his contributions to Cochrane."

Sera Tort and Angela Webster

"Fergus made an exceptional, long-standing contribution to Cochrane’s work and leadership which started back in 1997 when he attended the Proposal Meeting for the Lung Cancer Group organised by Xavier Bonfil in 1997. When the Lung Cancer Group was set up in 1998, he joined as Criticism Editor and took on the role of Joint Co-ordinating Editor in October 2004 when Xavier Bonfil stood down. He continued in this role when the group was transferred to France in 2013. Not only has Fergus spent almost 19 years promoting and sustaining the development of the Lung Cancer Group (in some difficult times with lack of resources and uncertainty about its future) but in 2016 also took on further leadership positions in Cochrane. First when he was appointed Joint Funding Arbiter with Angela Webster and then when he was elected to the new Cochrane Council and was elected by the Council to be the first Co-Chair at the inaugural meeting during Geneva Colloquium.

Deeply attached to Cochrane commitment to independence, transparency, and integrity, he was Joint author of report on COI policy in 2019 and contributed to the first draft of the revised CoI policy in 2020. His kindness and generosity has always been precious to the group and working with him was just so easy and natural. Fergus attended his last colloquium in September, we could not let him go without telling him how thankful we are for his tremendous contribution to the Lung Cancer Group and to Cochrane in general and how we will miss him."

Corynne Marchal and Tom Treasure

Chris Mavergames

"I started my career at Cochrane in 2006 as part of the Web Team working on editing and updating cochrane.org. I was very quickly taken in by the mission and the content of the organisation and desired to do as much as I could to further the development of Cochrane Reviews and the dissemination of Cochrane evidence.

Over the next few years, I took on more responsibility in the IT, software, and data areas of Cochrane's work culminating in becoming the organisation's first Head of Informatics and CIO, with overall responsibility for the technology infrastructure. During this formative time, I co-authored a Cochrane Review as well and was a co-author in 2013 on Cochrane's 'Strategy to 2020' along with the Senior Management Team. In 2016, along with a stellar team of folks across the CET and the community, I lead a team that obtained a $1.2 million dollar grant from the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation to further Cochrane's data curation infrastructure. During the COVID pandemic, I worked with a multidisciplinary team to secure funding to build the Cochrane COVID-19 Study Register and to contribute to Cochrane's response to this crisis.

In all my years at Cochrane, it was the people that made doing this important work so special. Dedicated, inspirational people who drove me to learn more, do more, and achieve more to further evidence production and dissemination for the good of all people. And, the Colloquia and meetings were some of the most inspired (and fun!) events I have ever attended. I made lifelong friends and collaborators and I tried to do my part to lead in the critical areas of technology and data for Cochrane. I am humbled and thrilled to receive this Emeritus award in recognition of these contributions. Thank you!"

Ann Marie Møller

"The first time I heard about the Cochrane Collaboration was in 1997, during a themed day in the department where I was working as a trainee anaesthetist. We were visited by someone from the surgical department who was involved with the Cochrane Collaboration. After presenting on the topic, he mentioned that only a few medical specialties were yet to be represented. Without fully considering the scope of the work involved, a small group of us thought, “Let’s see if we can form such a group.” We received significant support from our then head of department, Tom Pedersen, who later became deeply involved with the group himself over the years. We began preparations, attending conferences around the world to promote the project and trying to recruit interested professionals from the fields of anaesthesia, perioperative medicine, and intensive care. We also applied for funding and eventually secured enough to proceed with the initial steps that led to our acceptance as a review group by the Cochrane Collaboration's board in the spring of 2000.

The Cochrane Anaesthesia Review Group was now a reality, and thanks to the Nordic Cochrane Centre, we secured government funding from Denmark. We continued to apply for additional resources, and in time, we were able to hire both a managing editor and a trial search coordinator. What followed were many years of hard work, with me serving as coordinating editor alongside Nathan Pace from Utah, USA. Throughout the years, we produced a large number of reviews and participated in many initiatives introduced by the Cochrane Collaboration. Among our early efforts was a prioritisation analysis to identify the clinical areas most in need of systematic reviews. Additionally, we worked continuously on knowledge transfer throughout this period.

In 2018, at the request of the Cochrane Collaboration, we were divided into two groups: Cochrane Anaesthesia and Cochrane Emergency and Critical Care. Nathan and I took the opportunity to step down from our roles as coordinating editors and become regular content editors. Two of our most dedicated editors, Andrew Smith for Cochrane Anaesthesia and Harald Herkner for Cochrane Emergency and Critical Care, took over our positions. However, I retained the role of finance editor, a position I have held since the beginning.

When the new Cochrane structure was introduced, we formed a thematic group, which includes the two original groups as well as the First Aid Field in Belgium and the Prehospital Field in France. Additionally, we incorporated topics related to injuries within our group. The thematic group was officially approved by the Cochrane board at the recent Global Summit meeting, and I am excited about continuing this work into the future."

Nathan Pace 

 "Professor Nathan Pace is a retired American anesthesiologist but still active statistician, whose extensive contributions to Cochrane Anaesthesia and Cochrane Emergency and Critical Care date back to the group's inception in 2000. Nathan initially served as the sole statistical editor, providing feedback on all protocols and reviews until 2006. Nathan became the senior statistical editor in 2009 and was later appointed joint Coordinating Editor in 2011, serving in this role for seven years.

Nathan exemplifies Cochrane's values of global collaboration, teamwork, transparency, and mentorship. He has been a unwavering advocate for incorporating outcomes that are meaningful to end users and applying the latest methodologies (such as GRADE and ROB2) to reviews. His dedication includes mentoring young authors and providing statistical support to multiple Cochrane groups. Nathan has also contributed to Cochrane's guidelines, including the Cochrane Handbook and various review standards.

In addition to his editorial leadership, Nathan has been involved with the Cochrane MARS Working Group, the Cochrane Coordinating Editors' Executive, and the 2013 Cochrane Workshops Committee. He is an active member of the Cochrane Statistical Methods Group and has authored influential reviews. Nathan's career has left a lasting impact on Cochrane and the broader evidence-based research community.

Nathan is a highly valued member of our Editorial Board, and on behalf of the entire board, we congratulate him on this well-deserved award”.

Professor Andrew Smith, Coordinating Editor, Cochrane Anaesthesia, Lancaster University
Professor Harald Herkner, Coordinating Editor, Cochrane Emergency and Critical Care, Medical University of Vienna

 

Nandi Siegfried 

"In the late 1990s I was working as registrar in a hospital in Sydney, Australia. My consultant tasked me with conducting a literature review and handed me an armful of papers to read, appraise and synthesize. The high attrition rate in the trials worried me, but I had no tools to address this when interpreting the trial findings. Fortunately a nursing colleague suggested I get in touch with the Cochrane Collaboration. I was delighted when Clive Adams, Co-ordinating Editor of the Cochrane Schizophrenia Group, immediately invited me to join a review team working on the very same topic. He knew little about me and less about my nascent abilities but welcomed me enthusiastically nonetheless. It was this founding Cochrane principle of building on enthusiasm which I have never forgotten and have always tried to follow when engaging with potential new authors.

We conducted the first iteration of that review through the postal services with hundreds of pages of search results sent across the ocean. The process ignited my wish to deepen my understanding of epidemiology, and I enrolled in a part-time Masters of Public Health at Sydney University. There I was fortunate to meet Les Irwig and Davina Ghersi, both early adopters of Cochrane. Over twenty years later that review is still updated regularly and I have drawn in many of my colleagues as team members along the way. It is a truly global review.

When I later returned to South Africa, I joined the South African Cochrane Centre (SACC) which had recently been established at the South African Medical Research Council, headed up by Jimmy Volmink. Together with our hard-working colleagues we spent the next 10 years raising awareness of evidence-based healthcare and training reviewers across sub-Saharan Africa. At the time Cochrane reviews were not indexed in PubMed, and we met a lot of resistance from clinical colleagues and policymakers which I must admit has not entirely disappeared. It wasn’t a natural career step as it is now, but we definitely had a sense that we were involved in something bigger than ourselves which kept us going.

A professional highlight, without a doubt, was establishing the Cochrane HIV/AIDS Mentoring Programme in partnership with George Rutherford and Gail Kennedy of the Cochrane HIV/AIDS Review Group based at UCSF in California. George and Gail had identified that there were few Cochrane HIV/AIDS reviews relevant to the African setting and my SACC colleague, Joy Oliver, and I recognised that review authors in our region required intensive mentoring in methods skills, software use, and writing assistance. We set out to provide this by linking experienced authors with novice reviewers and built up to 47 review authors from six African countries. The Programme was built on the principles of harnessing enthusiasm and enabling wide participation in the work of Cochrane. I must credit George and Gail for their commitment to an equitable partnership and thank Joy who was the real engine of the Programme. Joy’s passion for consumer involvement encouraged us to consider how to engage more equitably with HIV-focused advocacy organizations.

I enjoyed my earlier methodological work, alongside Martie Muller and Jon Deeks, on pooling data from observational studies, and have welcomed the opportunity to participate in Cochrane methodology development in subsequent years. An exciting creative project involved designing an evidence-based reproductive healthcare boardgame funded by the World Health Organization (WHO), which is still in use today. Obtaining WHO Primary Registry status for the Pan-African Clinical Trials Registry was hard work but with the support of the European and Developing Country Clinical Trial Partnership and dedicated staff, the registry has now registered close to 4000 trials.

Other highlights include celebrating Sir Iain Chalmers’ graduation as an honorary Fellow of the South African College of Obstetrics and Gynaecology in 2001 - I was thrilled to attend the graduation dinner with him. Watching staff members from the SACC and the Mentoring Programme rise to great heights in their careers has been inspiring – these include Tamara Kredo, Charles Wiysonge, Taryn Young, Lawrence Mbuagbaw and Vivek Naranbhai.

I have been extraordinarily privileged to work alongside two long-time Cochrane contributors, Jimmy Volmink and Mike Clarke. After 20 years, Jimmy continues to urge me to aim higher and Mike has the extraordinary ability to intuitively understand when to encourage me to make my voice heard. These are precious gifts. And without Cochrane, I never would have met Jini Hetherington, Sally Hopewell, Nancy Owens, Don Operario, Lisa Askie, Belen Dofitas and Yanina Sguaserro all of whom shared office space, provided safe haven and offered friendship to me and my family when we relocated to Oxford for three years.

The impact of Cochrane in driving quality healthcare has been immense in my region. Of course, we don’t have results from an RCT to prove this, but I would argue that a pre-post analysis would suffice. In the field of HIV specifically, results from systematic reviews, often those developed by Cochrane teams, have informed global policy in prevention, treatment and care, and driven the research agenda forwards. We also see evidence of Cochrane’s impact in the uptake of GRADE for guidelines development by the World Health Organization. It is gratifying to see reviews informing guidelines in the knowledge translation ecosystem.

Unfortunately, the COVID-19 pandemic demonstrated that there is still a role for Cochrane in synthesizing findings, evaluating risk of bias, and communicating these to the public. Many of my scientifically-trained colleagues seemed to forget the most basic principles of epidemiology and allowed urgency to muddle their thinking at the time. We need to guard against this in future pandemics and learn from our mistakes.
Conducting a Cochrane review is committing to a way of life and thinking critically about risk of bias will permeate every facet of your being. For those who share the same desire to produce high-quality impactful reviews which matter to people in need of healthcare, participating in Cochrane can be highly satisfying work. Sadly, barriers to participation remain mostly related to language, geography, and residual colonial thinking. I would urge Cochrane members, new and old, to raise their voices so that these concerns can be aired openly, and hopefully galvanise Cochrane to provide equitable, safe and nurturing spaces for all."

“We are delighted that Nandi Siegfried has been awarded the Cochrane Emeritus award, recognizing her vast contributions of the past decades. We have experienced firsthand her leadership at Cochrane South Africa, co-coordinating the Cochrane HIV satellite editorial base at the height of the HIV pandemic, heading the HIV Mentoring Programme, and conducting practice changing reviews show her considerable contribution to the field.  In parallel, Nandi was developing and advancing methods for Cochrane reviews, and championing the cause for clinical trial registration. She led the formal recognition of the Pan African Clinical Trial Registry as a WHO primary register, thus creating a platform to foster transparency and collaboration on the African continent. Nandi has been a champion for Cochrane in Africa and globally. We thank and congratulate Nandi on this wonderful achievement!”

Tamara Kredo and Jordi Pardo

Prathap Tharyan

 "Few people encapsulate the ethos of Cochrane more than Prathap, and we’re delighted his contribution has been recognised with this Emeritus Award. Prathap’s energy and generosity of spirit was instrumental in setting up the Cochrane network in South Asia and securing a national licence to the Cochrane Library for India. For many years he tirelessly criss-crossed the region, training authors and encouraging the next generation of Cochrane leaders. And Prathap’s vocal talents were just as extraordinary – his rendition of REM's Losing my Religion (with lyrics about RevMan) at the Stavanger Colloquium remains an enduring memory 20 years on. Congratulations on a well-deserved Award."

Steve McDonald and Sally Green

Mario Tristan

Mario Tristan is a leader and EBM enthusiast who has always inspired a great passion for Cochrane. He founded the Central American and Spanish Caribbean Cochrane Centre and promoted the creation of centres across the region. Mario cares about people, especially early career researchers from Latin America. His profound and long standing social sensitivity has been very remarkable for the Iberoamerican Network. He is also an early adopter of new technologies and methods, an inspiration for younger generations to stay up-to-date and current. 

Eva Madrid and Juan Franco

Christopher Williams

As a founding member of Cochrane and for the following 20 years, Chris Williams made a significant contribution to the work and ethos of the Cochrane Collaboration in his role as Co-ordinating Editor of Cochrane Gynaecological, Neuro-oncology and Orphan Cancers, and in the wider organisation. This was particularly evident in the early years when he was instrumental in organising the Colloquium and other Cochrane meetings. He was also an excellent mentor, advocating the development of colleagues in systematic review methodology.

Under the guidance of Ian Chalmers, Chris Williams instigated the setting up of the Gynaecological Cancer Group. His expertise in rare cancers then led to the Group adopting a much wider scope to include neuro-oncology and aspects of care of cancer patients not relating to cancer of a specific site, as well as reviews dedicated to psychosocial interventions and rehabilitation.

Gail Quinn and Clare Jess

Hywel Williams 

"How did I get involved with Cochrane? Simple – it was Sir Iain Chalmers. When I was finishing off my dermatology training and doing a PhD in epidemiology at St. John’s Dermatology Centre in London, I read an editorial in the BMJ by Iain about getting to grips with Archie Cochrane’s agenda. It stopped me in my tracks. I wrote a letter to Iain. Next thing I know, he invited me down to Cochrane Head Office in Oxford and I spent a whole day there. I found myself walking out with a box of letters from other interested people in starting a Cochrane Skin Group. That was it. I wrote to them all and contacted many others. It took a while to firm up our plans, and in 1996 we had our exploratory meeting which Iain kindly attended, and we were off. You can find all our key timelines here.

My personal highlights are working together with people from all over the world – no hierarchy. Also, working with patient contributors like Maxine Whitton who ended up leading the Cochrane review on vitiligo – a condition associated with loss of pigmentation that can affect people with dark skin profoundly. Our internal editorial team was a joy to work with – really committed people who were key in producing high quality reviews. We had a real sense of an international community in Cochrane and we were all on first name terms. We had an excellent team of editors committed to the principles of EBM. Our old motto was “the truth is out there”. I also learnt a lot from the Colloquia – fantastic workshops from people like David Moher, Barney Reeves and Jonathan Sterne. It also gave me a lot of satisfaction to hand over the co-ordinating editor role after 21 years to Bob Boyle from Imperial and Robert Dellavalle from Denver – both loyal, fair and knowledgeable systematic reviewers with great organisational and people skills.

The greatest impact Cochrane has had on evidence-based healthcare in dermatology was to shake up the world on the need for independent randomised controlled trials with active comparators – not the 23rd placebo controlled study of a new expensive drug. In fact, Cochrane Skin played a vital role in identifying uncertainties that were then picked up by the UK Dermatology Clinical Trials Network and funded by external bodies such as the NIHR. Several national trials have been completed as a result on vitiligo, pemphigoid, cellulitis, warts, eczema, basal cell carcinoma and acne. Some of the reviews also produced clear messages such as the lack of value in sentinel node biopsy and lymphadenectomy for melanoma – which was rapidly going down the evaluation bypass, or the lack of evidence for the painful ritual of freezing warts on the feet with liquid nitrogen. Most of all, it was the culture change that had the greatest impact so that dermatology colleagues started to think more about the value of undertaking systematic rather than traditional narrative reviews, and the need to try and base clinical practice on the best external evidence where possible

My advice to someone interested in getting involved in Cochrane would be to follow your heart. Jump in. Even if your review does not end up with a clear answer, concentrate on identifying the key priorities for future research. You will learn so much with the fantastic training materials now on offer. Most of all it is all about the lovely people you will meet. Collaborate, collaborate and collaborate and break down the normal professional boundaries that sometimes restrict our ability to help others."

Lifetime members

Individuals at all levels of the organization who have made an exceptional, long-standing commitment to Cochrane's work.

Linda Clare

"Professor Clare was a contact editor for the Cochrane Dementia and Cognitive Impairment Group from 2004 to 2021. For much of that time, she was the Group’s only contact editor with specific expertise in non-pharmacological treatments and she therefore played a huge role in supporting an expanding portfolio of reviews in that area. The editorial team and many author teams reaped the benefits of her topic and methodological knowledge, judgement and wisdom, with a massive impact on the quality of the reviews produced. She also led author teams for reviews on some key topics, and introduced the Group to many enthusiastic young researchers who took on roles as authors and later editors. She was a wonderful support to successive co-ordinating and managing editors in the Dementia Group. She was (is!) a great collaborator with a clarity around her subject area that she always communicated succinctly and accessibly."

Sue Marcus and Jenny McCleery

Leon Flicker

"Professor Flicker was a mainstay of the editorial board of the Cochrane Dementia and Cognitive Improvement Group since its inception in 1995. For 28 years, he has been an enormous support to a succession of co-ordinating and managing editors, providing content and methodological expertise and invaluable strategic advice, as well as general encouragement. He has been the contact editor for numerous reviews and never turns down a request for advice and assistance. He has been closely involved in numerous initiatives within the group, including the early adoption of DTA methods and the adaptation of the STARD tool for dementia studies. He has promoted Cochrane evidence in many fora and has brought many collaborators to the group. His great sense of humour and uncomplicated approach belie the massive intellect and expertise that have been at the heart of his contribution to our group.

It has been a privilege and a pleasure to work with and learn from him." 

 Sue Marcus and Jenny McCleery

Patricia Graves

"Patricia started working with the Cochrane Infectious Diseases Group (CIDG) around 1996 to work on the malaria vaccines review, through Paul Garner. It was at the time of the trials of the first malaria vaccine Spf66 and there was a lot of confusion about whether it had sufficient efficacy or not. She’s made an extraordinary contribution to CIDG, and as a CIDG Editor and author has played a key role in shaping the CIDG malaria and vector control portfolio to ensure focus on high-impact, timely Cochrane Reviews and updates.  Whilst she stepped down as a CIDG Editor in June 2023, she remains a CIDG Specialist Advisor."

Deirdre Walshe and Tilly Fox

Peter Herbison

"When Adrian Grant set up the Cochrane Incontinence Group in 1995 he asked a colleague of mine, Don Wilson, if he would like to be an editor. Don and Adrian had collaborated in the past. Don said that he would happily join as long as I was also made an editor. Don wanted someone who was aware of the statistical and technical issues with him, and Adrian was pleased to have me. I was aware of the Collaboration and was very happy to join. Also, in Dunedin at that time was Jean Hay-Smith who had written reviews for the Pregnancy and Childbirth group and was to become a PhD student supervised by Don and myself. She had already been asked to be an editor of the incontinence group. So it was great to have three of us working together.

There are many personal highlights during my time at Cochrane... Publication of my first author Cochrane Review (Weighted vaginal cones for urinary incontinence), meeting people in person who I had looked up to, such as Doug Altman. Another highlight for me was going to Colloquiums where everyone was so supportive, not the competitive nature of some medical conferences I had been to. I also really valued learning that weighted averages were not as simple as they sound.

The impact of Cochrane is huge. When asked what the most important advances in healthcare have been, evidence based medicine is always in the top few mentioned. Cochrane has been instrumental in the evidence based medicine field by providing the best evidence about the success of treatments. People involved with the Collaboration have also led projects that look at how to produce the best evidence, and how to summarise that evidence. Examples are showing the importance of hiding the allocation in randomised trials, and network meta-analysis, which provides more clinically useful evidence than head-to-head comparisons.

If you are interested in getting involved in Cochrane, I would say do it. Writing a review teaches you a lot more than deeper understanding about a treatments and conditions — it also teaches a lot about science. If you don’t feel up to contributing to a review there are a lot of other ways to get involved."

"We would like to offer our heartfelt congratulations to Prof Peter Herbison on receiving a well deserved lifetime membership award. We nominated Peter for this award as he has been involved with Cochrane for over 20 years and has assisted 11 different methods and review groups over this time. He was a member of the statistical methods group and statistical editor for both the Bone, Joint and Muscle and the Incontinence groups. In addition to this he has co-authored over 24 Cochrane reviews. Peter has been invaluable to Cochrane New Zealand supporting New Zealanders authoring Cochrane reviews and has always been willing to give up his time to teach statistics to budding Cochrane authors, on Cochrane workshops. His teaching technique is always highly appreciated as he is able to communicate complex statistical theories in easy to understand language. He thoroughly deserves this recognition for all of the skills he has unselfishly shared over the years."

Assoc Prof Vanessa Jordan and Prof Cindy Farquhar

Anne Lethaby 

"I had a passion for evidence-based research and got a job with the Cochrane Gynaecology and Fertility group in 1996 as a systematic reviewer, not long after this group was established. The Co-ordinating Editor, Cindy Farquhar (a gynaecologist from New Zealand) had attended a course in Oxford with the original movers and shakers of Cochrane. Her passion and commitment were infectious.

My personal highlights of my involvement with Cochrane were the strong sense of collaboration and support from our own group plus others (including lots of fun!), the passion and search for constant improvement of the product offered and the challenges to always do better.

In some cases, systematic review findings have overturned established and not particularly evidence-based practices (often to the chagrin of established healthcare practitioners). It is virtually impossible for an active healthcare practitioner to keep abreast of all the new developments in research and continue to improve his/her practice without the comprehensively developed systematic reviews that summarise all available evidence to date.

Since Cochrane came on the scene, we find ourselves in an internet age where it is easy to have information overload and it is difficult for the consumer of health information to know how to separate out the wheat from the chaff. The quality of the information that we receive from multiple sources can cause major disruption, conflict and polarisation of society (as evidenced by extreme views during the Covid pandemic). With respect to information on health, Cochrane offers a systematic and transparent process based entirely on evidence (as well as values and preferences) and points the way towards reducing uncertainty and improving health outcomes.

Cochrane offers the chance to get involved with groups that offer support, help and advice to those interested in evidence-based systematic reviews in the field of medicine. There is a strong sense of collegiality and fairness, encouragement to continually improve and inspiration in the work required. The strong backup of volunteers underscores the importance of the vision."

"We would like to offer our heartfelt congratulations to Anne Lethaby on receiving a well deserved lifetime membership award. We nominated Anne as she has worked with Cochrane for over 25 years and during this time has made an extraordinary contribution to Cochrane as a whole. She has authored 32 Cochrane reviews for 11 different Cochrane review groups and has been an editor for both the Sexually Transmitted Infections group and the Cochrane Gynaecology and Fertility group. Anne is also a talented and engaging teacher and has taken part in many workshop teaching systematic reviewer methodology. She is also a peer reviewer for four groups and in recent years has also helped out centrally by conducting copy editing for the Cochrane editorial unit. Anne’s contributions, as many and as varied as they are, are always of the highest quality. She is always generous with her time and expertise to anyone she comes into contact with and we feel she exemplifies the principles of Cochrane."

Assoc Prof Vanessa Jordan and Prof Cindy Farquhar

Fiona Rowe

"Fiona started her work with Cochrane as an author in 2007 on the Botulinum toxin for the treatment of strabismus review, which was first published in 2009. This review had its 4th version published as an update earlier this year. Fiona has been an author on a total of five different Cochrane reviews.

In addition to being an author she became the lead orthoptic editor for the Cochrane Eyes and Vision group in 2013 until this year.

She has built up a number of collaborations including researchers, clinicians and patient and public representatives. This includes the VISable patient and public involvement group which she has facilitated for over 10 years. Fiona has worked tirelessly to change the face of visual impairment after acquired brain injury, providing evidence for clinical practice, raising awareness and developing countless research studies and publications on the subject.

She spends a considerable amount of time promoting unmet needs, campaigning for change and presenting her research findings. She has an admirable and exceptional ability to convey her knowledge, share ideas, promote her work and communicate her ideas."
Lauren Hepworth and Claire Howard

Karen Steingart 

"Karen has been the most meticulous and, at the same time, author-friendly peer reviewer, colleague, and editor you could wish for. Her generosity of spirit and fostering of collaboration between people and institutions in completion of high-impact, timely Cochrane Reviews means she truly represents Cochrane values. She has been a Cochrane Infectious Diseases Group (CIDG) and Cochrane Diagnostic Test Accuracy (DTA) Editor and Screening and Diagnostic Tests Methods Group (SDTMG) member for many years. Karen is also co-author of a chapter in the recently published Cochrane Handbook for Systematic Reviews of Diagnostic Test Accuracy and also contributed to the Handbook as a peer reviewer.

Karen became active with the CIDG in 2011, leading a Cochrane DTA review of Xpert MTB/RIF for tuberculosis. In total, Karen has authored over 10 CIDG Cochrane Review titles (and kept them updated in a timely manner and responsive to WHO guideline needs). She started in the Cochrane DTA Editorial Team to learn from us about how diagnostic reviews work and what important pitfalls are, but very soon the roles of teacher and student reversed. Also, in the dynamics between the DTA Editorial Team and other groups, Karen could be very culture sensitive and always helped to find a solution that was acceptable to everyone.

Karen has a personal interest in mentoring junior investigators, especially researchers from low-income and middle-income countries, and this is evident in the Cochrane review teams she has assembled over the years. She is also strongly committed to mentorship and helping women develop careers in science."

Yemisi Takwoingi and Mariska Leeflang

Maoling Wei

"Maoling is one of the Chinese pioneers of Cochrane China Centre and the field of evidence-based medicine in China. Dated back to 1998, she started to work on the support of the establishment of Cochrane China Centre (formerly, Chinese Cochrane Centre) at West China University of Medical Science, with the support from the Ministry of Health of People's Republic of China, which was later formally registered at Cochrane Collaboration in 1999.

As the one of the earliest advocates and witnesses of the development of Cochrane in China, Maoling has made an significant contribution to increase Cochrane’s awareness, impact, trust, and engagement in China. Maoling was devoted to the education and dissemination of Cochrane and evidence-based medicine by compiling the textbooks and teaching materials, providing trainings, translations, convening conferences, workshops and networks in China, which made more and more Chinese students, clinicians and researchers start to contribute to Cochrane as authors, editors, and peer reviewers.

Since 1999, she coordinated the hand search of Chinese RCTs in 192 Chinese journals published since 1950 for the Cochrane Register of Studies (CRS) for Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials (CENTRAL). Without funding, she appealed many Chinese clinicians and medical students volunteering to participate in this work, which disseminated the spirit of Cochrane and collaboration in many hospitals in China. Most of the clinicians and students she mentored has now become key academic leaders at hospitals and universities in China and the spirit of Cochrane is being carried forward generation by generation."

Yuan Chi and Jianping Liu

• Learn about how you can join Cochrane
• Nominate a Cochrane Colleague

 

Thursday, November 14, 2024

Cochrane is named in honour of Archie Cochrane, a British medical researcher who contributed greatly to the development of epidemiology as a science. 

Archie Cochrane is best known for his influential book, Effectiveness and Efficiency: Random Reflections on Health Services, published in 1972. The principles he set out in it so clearly were straightforward: he suggested that, because resources would always be limited, they should be used to provide equitably those forms of health care which had been shown in properly designed evaluations to be effective. In particular, he stressed the importance of using evidence from randomized controlled trials (RCTs) because these were likely to provide much more reliable information than other sources of evidence. Cochrane's simple propositions were soon widely recognised as seminally important - by lay people as well as by health professionals.

How can we have a rational health service if we don’t know which of the things being done in it are useful and which are useless or possibly even harmful? — Archie Cochrane

In 1979 he wrote, "It is surely a great criticism of our profession that we have not organised a critical summary, by specialty or subspecialty, adapted periodically, of all relevant randomised controlled trials." His challenge led to the establishment during the 1980s of an international collaboration to develop the Oxford Database of Perinatal Trials.

In 1987, the year before Cochrane died, he referred to a systematic review of RCTs of care during pregnancy and childbirth as "a real milestone in the history of randomized trials and in the evaluation of care", and suggested that other specialties should copy the methods used. His encouragement, and the endorsement of his views by others, led to the opening of the first Cochrane Centre (in Oxford, UK) in 1992 and the founding of  Cochrane in 1993.

Archie portrait made up of contributors pictures

Today Cochrane members and supporters come from 190 countries . We are researchers, health professionals, patients, carers, and people passionate about improving health outcomes for everyone, everywhere. Our global independent network gathers and summarizes the best evidence from research to help you make informed choices about treatment and we have been doing this for 30 years.

The 12th of January marks Archie Cochrane's birthday and it's a great opportunity to reflect on his contributions.

• Learn more about Archie Cochrane on Wikipedia
• Read BMJ Editorial 'Revisiting the value of Archie Cochrane’s contributions' by Xavier Bonfill
• Learn more about the work of Cochrane

Thursday, January 11, 2024

Healthcare decision making can be complex – learn from Sarah’s personal story and make use of Cochrane resources.

Evidence-based healthcare is the integration of the best research evidence with clinical expertise and patient values. It is often represented with these three elements in a Venn diagram with these three equally important elements. However, decision making in healthcare isn’t always so neat and uncomplicated.  Cochrane systematic reviews contribute to the best available, current, valid, and relevant evidence in this process. Cochrane is also committed to helping others understand evidence-based healthcare and the role of evidence.

Sarah Chapman, a former nurse with a long career in health research, had progressive hearing loss since early adulthood. Recently she was faced with a life changing decision if she would like to go ahead with an optional cochlear implant. In this video with illustrations by Karen Morley, Sarah talks us through her personal story of healthcare decision making and how evidence and other factors fit into her thinking.

 

Sarah explains, “We are messy creature full of messy emotions, living complex lives, and it's in that space that we make our healthcare decisions. Understanding evidence and learning to spot which health information is trustworthy is important to all patients and caregivers – and Cochrane has the resources that can help with this.” You can learn more about Sarah’s in her personal blog, ‘From Ear to Eternity.’

Cochrane has a long and rich history of collaborating with healthcare consumers (patients, carers, and the public). Presenting our evidence in a way that is useful for people making decisions about healthcare and advocating for evidence in health and care is an important part of our work.

Cochrane’s Evidence Essentials is a free introduction to Evidence Based Medicine, clinical trials, systematic reviews, and how to use evidence when making decisions about your health. It was co-produced with patients and caregivers and it is presented a interactive and accessible manner.

Catherine Spencer, Cochrane CEO, says “For Cochrane to achieve its vision, producing high quality reviews of health evidence isn’t enough. Cochrane aspires to a world where all health decisions are informed by high-quality evidence – which means people need to first understand evidence and how to use it. As Sarah’s story shows, making health decisions can be complex. Cochrane’s Evidence Essentials helps people understand health evidence and how to use it. We hope that anyone new to the world of evidence-based healthcare will find this resource indispensable.”

• View the free online resource ‘Cochrane Evidence Essentials’
• Get involved in Cochrane’s work as a patient or carer

Friday, January 19, 2024 Category: The difference we make

Getting involved in Cochrane’s work means becoming part of a global community. Connect with Cochrane Groups across the world through the Cochrane International Mobility programme!

The Cochrane International Mobility programme builds on previous successful student exchanges involving Cochrane Centres around the world. A broader initiative involving multiple Cochrane Groups has  been launched by Cochrane People Services Department.

Successful applicants will complete a placement in a host Group, learning more about the production, use and knowledge translation of Cochrane reviews.

Gain skills and experience

Arrangements are flexible and placements can vary in length, depending on the project plan. Placements are typically self-funded. Participants completing postgraduate study have benefitted from university funding, and some Groups can offer work space or accommodation. Training and mentoring support is offered in different areas, specific to Groups' expertise.

Learn from each other

Cochrane International Mobility offers opportunities for learning and training not only for participants but also for host staff. Cochrane Croatia welcomed a student intern as part of the fledgling programme.

“I’m very grateful to Cochrane Croatia for hosting me and for this wonderful experience, and I’m sure I’ll be using all the skills I learned as I continue on in my academic career,” said Sarah Tanveer, Cochrane International Mobility participant, Summer 2019.

Tina Poklepović Peričić, Co-director, Cochrane Croatia added, “This was an encouraging experience for us all, and spending time with Sarah, exchanging experiences, teaching and working with her was a true refreshment to our Centre.”

Apply now

Find out more about the programme on Cochrane Training or search for opportunities on Cochrane Engage.

Read profiles of participants

 

 

Tuesday, October 29, 2024

Cochrane's strength is in its collaborative, global community.  Our 100,000+ members and supporters from more than 130 countries work together to produce credible, accessible health information and help inform health decision making. Though we are spread out across the globe, our shared passion for health evidence unites us. 

We want to come together and tell our collective and individual Cochrane stories!
To share your #MyCochraneStory please contact support@cochrane.org with the following:

• A photo: At your desk, at Cochrane event, or a headshot.
• Your country of residence: Our community is diverse and we want to celebrate this!
• Your Cochrane Story: We want to hear about what Cochrane work and achievements you are most proud of! 3-4 sentences about yourself and your story and any URLs that could be included.
• Social media handles: We will give your Twitter or Instagram account a tag; just let us know your handles!

 Phil Käding, from Germany, first learned of Cochrane when studying pharmacy. Since joining Cochrane's volunteer platform, Cochrane Engage, he has contributed to numerous translation projects and provided consumer feedback on several Cochrane reviews. Phil has also been an active participant on the citizen science platform, Cochrane Crowd, and has attended Cochrane Training webinars and seminars. He sees his involvement in Cochrane as playing an important role in directing his academic path towards clinical drug development and trials (Good Clinical Practice) and is now pursuing postgraduate studies in this field. Phil especially appreciates the inclusive and collaborative nature of Cochrane, involving patients, professionals, and scientists from different backgrounds. He encourages anyone interested in evidence-based medicine, regardless of speciality, to get involved!

 Jessica D’Urbano, from Italy, is currently studying Occupational and Space Medicine in Friuli-Venezia Giulia. She loves both patient interaction and solitary research and scientific writing. Along with spending time with her daughter, Jessica volunteers for Violawalkhome,  an international project supporting people in danger walking on the street. As a proud Cochrane Member, Jessica values Cochrane's role as a global reference for healthcare workers and patients. Engaged in the Cochrane US Mentoring Program with a mentor and cohort of six mentees, she actively contributes to the citizen science platform Cochrane Crowd and undertakes interesting volunteer tasks on Cochrane Engage.  Jessica recommends both platforms for their opportunities to contribute to real research, learn about evidence synthesis, and find enjoyment in the process!  

Anthony Uwandu-uzoma, from Nigeria, based in United Kingdom, holds a degree in Medicine and Surgery and a Masters in Public Health.  He is a research assistant in a University of Bolton project, focusing on the mental health experiences of nursing and pre-registration nursing students in the UK. With a mentoring background spanning over 50 Public Health Masters students, Anthony shares his expertise through his blog that helps train students in public health data analysis, epidemiology, health promotion, and critical writing skills. An enthusiastic Cochrane contributor, Anthony actively participates in the citizen science platform, Cochrane Crowd. He also dedicates time to tasks within our volunteer hub, Cochrane Engage. In 2023, Anthony was selected to participate as a mentee in the Cochrane US Mentoring Program. Anthony actively contributes to these Cochrane initiatives, as he feels it underscores his unwavering dedication to upholding the rigorous methodology and research standards for which Cochrane is renowned. 

Sowmyashree Hanumantha Setty, from India, is a second-year master's student at Tufts University School of Engineering majoring in Biomedical Engineering. Tufts University is a Cochrane US Affiliate Centre. Under the mentorship of Dr. Shayesteh Jahanfar, Sowmyashree discovered her passion for impactful research after undertaking the Cochrane Standard Author Training. In addition to her role as a Teaching Assistant in systematic review courses, Sowmyashree has contributed to reviews on pregnancy and childbirth and pioneered initiatives like "Incorporating Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion into Cochrane Systematic Reviews with AI" alongside Dr. Jahanfar. Sowmyashree draws immense inspiration from collaborating with her Cochrane colleagues. She is eager to persist in her current work, contribute to additional reviews, and embark on leading her own project in the future. For Sowmyashree, Cochrane represents the gold standard of systematic reviews and a community that fosters growth and personal development - it's where passion meets impact! 

Jheng-Yan Wu, a dietitian hailing from Taiwan, has been actively involved with Cochrane since 2018, when he first encountered the principles of evidence-based medicine and Cochrane's work. Their dedication led them to become a Cochrane Supporter in 2021 by translating evidence from English to Traditional Chinese. In 2022,  Wu embarked on a personal challenge of learning about the methodology behind systematic reviews and conducting meta-analyses. He fully immersed himself in the Cochrane Handbook, diligently absorbing valuable techniques along the way. The commitment was so profound that he decided to get the Cochrane logo on his arm as a cherished tattoo, serving as a constant reminder to apply his acquired knowledge in clinical practice. This act symbolizes his unwavering passion and aspiration to one day publish in the prestigious Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews.

Karina Tapinova, discovered Cochrane during her medical school courses on pharmacology and epidemiology and began using Cochrane Reviews to uncover evidence on commonly used medical products in her country, Kazakhstan. To her surprise, she learned that many home remedies relied on by her family and local clinicians had no scientific evidence of benefit to support their use. After completing her studies, she began working as a research assistant at her university and is now responsible for writing systematic reviews. As Karina delved deeper into the Cochrane Collaboration, having completed its interactive modules, using the Cochrane Handbook, and participating in educational webinars, she became a volunteer translator for Cochrane Russia and took on tasks through Cochrane Crowd, which greatly expanded her knowledge. In summer 2022, Karina was fortunate to participate in the US Cochrane Mentorship program - a wonderful opportunity that she never could have imagined during her medical school days. As a mentee of Cochrane Russia, she began working on translating into Russian and recording Cochrane podcasts with her husband, Eugene, and as of 2023, she started editing translations of the Plain Language Summaries of Cochrane Reviews, prepared by volunteer translators. Karina is also currently involved in organizing international webinars. To her, the Cochrane Collaboration represents not only a gold standard of systematic reviews, but also a community of incredible people, opportunities for growth, and personal development.

Rosnani Zakaria, a family medicine specialist and medical lecturers at Universiti Sains Malaysia in Kelantan, Malaysia. She graduated from St. Andrews University and The University Of Manchester in late 1990 and early 2000s and completed family physician training from Academy of Family Physician Malaysia & RACGP in 2012. Rosnani started to get involved in editing Malay PLS with Cochrane Malaysia in 2015 and loved the experience, as Community education is her passion. Rosnani is also a researcher in several medical fields.

Marwa Badawy, from Egypt has a Bachelor's degree in Medicine and Surgery and is now a General practitioner at Ministry of Health in Egypt. Marwa is an active researcher and a scientific writer with four publications and more to come! When the Cochrane Mentorship program opened, it ignited fire in her to be part of Cochrane family, to join this prestigious research association to learn from her professors and to make good connections. She participated with four projects with her amazing mentor: Dr. Jahanfar and learned alot. Marwa also has successfully passed the Cochrane Systematic Review Standard Author training, and is also a volunteer at Cochrane Crowd in the "Covid Quest Lite" Project, screening more than 100 papers.She is working right now on a new Cochrane project in the public health field with her mentor, Dr. Jahanfar, on a review in screening, and will work on analysis and writing with her. Marwa is enthusiastic to work in Cochrane as her long term plan.

Ahmed Azam, from Egypt is a highly motivated physiotherapy researcher involved in clinical research since his early years in school. Ahmed uses his research skills in methodology and statistics, and has two years experience in conducting clinical research and meta-analysis models to evaluate the safety and efficacy of novel treatments. He developed a model for medical student research in Egypt, provided the evidence synthesis workshops for trainees in 2021, and currently maintains a bi-annual clinical research training for Arab doctors with +400 people benefiting from the training. Ahmed first joined Cochrane in December 2020 when he signed up for Cochrane Crowd. Within days, he classified more than 5,000 records with 95% accuracy, and earned four Cochrane Crowd badges. He also completed the newcomer and student pathways. Ahmed first earned his Cochrane membership in December 2020 until 2027 and is proud to continue to be a Cochrane member.

Jyothsna Kuriakose, from India, is an early career professional specializing in the field of palliative medicine pertinent to oncology. Her areas of special interest include research methodologies in palliative care and complex symptom management. The first ever encounter she had with Cochrane was as a postgraduate student when she had to present Cochrane reviews relevant to palliative care for the departmental journal clubs in the hospital. Since then, it was her dream to work with Cochrane. She has had the opportunity to do a peer review for the Cochrane PaPaS group. A proud member of Cochrane since July 2022, she is one of the mentees in the Cochrane US Mentoring Program Year 2 (2022-2023). She is excited to be a part of this platform and is looking forward to learning from and contributing to the many works of Cochrane.

Paola Andrenacci from Argentina has worked as a nutritionist for more than 20 years, specializing in liver diseases and is passionate about evidence-based nutrition, dissemination and translation of knowledge. Paola is a participant in the inaugural Cochrane US Mentor Program. As a collaborator of Cochrane Nutrition, Paola was invited to participate in the writing of Prioritization exercise: WHO evidence-based guide for nutrition and in the translation from English to Spanish of 14 nutrition summaries for the Cochrane Nutrition Newsletters. Through Tiffany Duque, she received a full scholarship for WHO/Cochrane/Cornell Summer Institute (training completed in July 2022). She also had the opportunity to complete another training at Tufts University School of Medicine (affiliate of Cochrane US)  and training was completed in October 2022. Paola was co-chair for International Women's Day  and is now the coordinator of the Cochrane US Mentoring Program Y2 as well as program mentor and mentee at the same time! Finally, Paola was accepted to be part of the ExME (S4BE in Spanish) dissemination committee and author of the blog.

Esra Bilir, from Turkey, is a gynecology and obstetrics resident in Germany. She completed the “Gender Studies Certificate Program” at The Center for Gender Studies at Koc University, Turkey and “Postgraduate Certificate in Epidemics and Ethical Global Health” at AUSN, USA. She also attained MSc in Data Science. Currently, she is pursuing MSc in Global Health. Her research focuses on gynecologic oncology, research methodology, and biostatistics. Since medical school, she is inspired by high-quality research and evidence-based medicine. Dr Bilir has been proud to hold  Cochrane Membership since August 2022. She is currently a mentee in Year 2 (2022-2023) Cochrane US Mentoring Program. She is thrilled to join this extraordinary cohort of people around the globe and to work with Cochrane experts to further improve her skills in research methodology. Dr Bilir is looking forward to a productive future with the Cochrane team. 

Moriasi Nyanchoka, from Kenya, has a background in Public Health Nutrition and is a researcher interested in global public health. He is passionate about evidence synthesis in global health and its utilisation to inform policy and decision-making. He is also interested in knowledge translation, communication, and dissemination of research synthesis. Moriasi joined Cochrane in April 2022 when he signed up for Cochrane Crowd, our Citizen Scientist platform. He has classified 11,096 records, participated in 4 Global screening challenges, and earned 12 Cochrane Crowd badges. He earned his Cochrane Membership in June 2022 and is proud to be a Cochrane Member. Moriasi is currently a mentee in the Cochrane US Mentoring Program. He is excited to join the Year 2 (2022-2023) Mentorship cohort and thrilled to work with Cochrane mentors to further his skills in evidence synthesis and contributions.

Mohammed K. Al-Haggagi is an Egyptian physical therapist and researcher interested in neuroscience, neurorehabilitation, biomechanics, and electrophysical agents. He is passionate about knowledge, scientific methodology, and continuous learning in order to provide the best treatment for patients. He joined Cochrane for the first time in September 2021, when he signed up for Cochrane Crowd. He had classified 5000 records, and he soon earned five Cochrane Crowd badges and completed the newcomer and student pathways. Among these is the gold badge in clinical trial identification, which he earned with 100% accuracy. He first earned his Cochrane membership in July 2022, and is proud to continue to be a Cochrane member. The Cochrane Task Exchange was the door that turned him to the Early Career Professional network. This opportunity has helped him collaborate with researchers across the globe whom he only knew by their names from their books and papers. He now has his own international research team, leads about 6 other research teams in different medical schools, works on many papers (systematic reviews and meta-analysis, cross-sectional studies, CT, ... etc), and has given him access to invaluable training resources. He is proud to be a Cochrane member.

Santiago Castiello-de Obeso was raised in Guadalajara, Jalisco, Mexico but now resides in Oxford, UK. He recalls the first time he heard about Cochrane when a friend told him that vitamin C did not prevent the common cold. He enquired into this and his friend explained what a meta-analysis was. Santiago was astonished at the idea of combining all studies into one and realised how much sense that made. Inspired by this, Santiago started working on a Cochrane review with Cochrane Schizophrenia and was part of the inauguration of Cochrane Mexico. Santiago is currently Chair of the Early Career Professional Network. He is certain that whatever the future holds, Cochrane will be there.

Nelly Darbois is a French physiotherapist and science writer. For the past 3 years, she has been writing articles on rehabilitation for patients and caregivers, based on Cochrane reviews. Her website receives up to 45,000 visits/month. Nelly a contributor to Cochrane Crowd and Cochrane France and she also edits Wikipedia pages based on Cochrane reviews.

Cheng Hsien Hung, from Taiwan, works in a regional hospital, and specializes in adverse drug reaction assessment and pharmacist education. He was first introduced to the Cochrane Systematic Reviews in 2017 when learning Evidence-Based Medicine. Since 2018, he learned critical appraisal of randomized controlled trials and non-randomized controlled trials through the Cochrane Taiwan course and tried to apply what he learned in clinical practice. In 2021, he participated in an Evidence-Based Medicine promotion activity held by Cochrane Taiwan and received positive feedback on his use of interesting memes to promote Cochrane Systematic Reviews. He has been learning many valuable skills through Cochrane and hopes to use high-quality Cochrane reviews to help more people in the future.

Mojtaba Keikha, is an Iranian researcher, and PhD student in Epidemiology at Kerman University of Medical Sciences. He is a member of Cochrane Trainers Network and a member of Cochrane Iran. Motjaba collaborated as a facilitator, mentor and coordinator in several Cochrane workshops in Iran. He is the author of two Cochrane articles published in the Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews and also does tasks in Cochrane Crowd and Cochrane Task Exchange.

Fatemeh Mirzaei, from Iran, is a 6th-grade dental student at Golestan University of Medical Sciences. She joined Cochrane in February 2022, starting her activity in Cochrane Crowd, our citizen scientist platform. In less than one month, her contributions granted her full Cochrane membership. She has earned 9 badges, contributed to 6 tasks, and has earned over 1,671 membership points. When she took part in the "HPV vaccination programme" and "The COHeRe Project" challenges, she screened more than 300 records!

Pratibha Mary Thomas, from India is working as an Assistant Professor of Physical therapy. Her specialization and area of expertise is in Musculoskeletal Disorder and Sports and she also volunteers as a manuscript reviewer in various International journals. Prathibha started her journey with Cochrane in March 2022 and progressed through each step of making her contribution to Cochrane by being associated with the Cochrane Crowd activities and from being a Supporter to earning a Cochrane membership. The Cochrane Crowd activities helped her to a great extent in gaining comprehensive knowledge especially regarding RCT's, which are considered as a gold standard of evidence. The Health Evidence with Cochrane Evidence Essentials section provided Pratibha with valuable insights on how to utilize and apply evidence into practice, so that she could deliver the best treatment options to her patients. Along with all these, being an academician, Cochrane served as a guiding tool of how to impart research knowledge to her students. Pratibha has now contributed to 7 tasks, earned 9 badges, participated in the global challenge on "COVID Quest Lite" and also participated in the Screen4Me challenge by the Metabolic and Endocrine Disorders group.

Nila Pillai, comes from a midwifery background with three grandchildren. She first got into Cochrane back in 2012 through a research project, the SEA URCHIN project, using Cochrane evidence to reduce neonatal infection. After the research project she was invited to take on the position of Cochrane Support Coordinator for Cochrane Malaysia and her main role has been managing their translation initiative,  Ringkasan Cochrane Bahasa Malaysia.  She has been doing this for 7 years. Nila really enjoys working with the volunteer translators and editors who have responded amazingly to the project and she credit the success of the project to them. She's proud to be a part of the Cochrane Malaysia team!

Paul Ogongo, from Kenya is a Research Scientist in Pathogen Immunobiology program at the Institute of Primate Research, Nairobi, Kenya. He joined Cochrane in 2013 after being introduced by his colleague Dr. Jael Obiero. Paul's first involvement was as a peer reviewer with Cochrane Infectious Diseases group  for the review, ‘’Circulating antigen tests and urine reagent strips for diagnosis of active schistosomiasis in endemic areas.’’ in 2013. Paul has been an author with Cochrane STI group of the updated review, “Topical microbicides for preventing sexually transmitted infections” and another registered review, “Nifuratel-Nystatin combination for the treatment of mixed infections of bacterial vaginosis, vulvovaginal candidiasis, and trichomonal vaginitis.” Paul's areas of research are immunology and diagnostics of infectious diseases. Currently, and his research focuses on human T cell immune responses to Mycobacterium tuberculosis infection. He is excited about the networking and mentorship opportunities that comes with being a member of Cochrane and thrilled at the birth of the newest member of the Cochrane family, Cochrane Kenya.

Jael Apondi Obiero, from Nairobi, Kenya, is a Senior Research Scientist in reproductive health at the Institute of Primate Research, where she uses nonhuman primates as models for preclinical research. Jael first heard about Cochrane Reviews in 2007 at a Research Methods Course on Randomised Trials, Systematic Review Method and Good Clinical Practice organised by the Effective Care and Research Unit in East London, South Africa. She thereafter proceeded to register her first Cochrane review, “Topical microbicides for preventing sexually transmitted infections” with the Sexually Transmitted Infections Review Group. This review published in 2012, and we published an update in 2021. Jael registered her second Cochrane Review title “Nifuratel-Nystatin combination for the treatment of mixed infections of bacterial vaginosis, vulvovaginal candidiasis, and trichomonal vaginitis” with the same review group thereafter, and in 2015, she received the Aubrey Sheiham Evidence-Based Healthcare in Africa Leadership Award from Cochrane to conduct this Cochrane Review. She has mentored other Cochrane authors in her region, and is happy to have used her Cochrane experience to contribute to the birth of the newest Cochrane baby on the globe, Cochrane Kenya, which is launching in June 2021

Julián Balanta-Melo, from Colombia, is an Assistant Professor at the Universidad del Valle School of Dentistry. As a Specialist in Oral Rehabilitation (Prosthodontics), he has implemented the Evidence-Based Dentistry principles in his clinical practice and his preclinical/clinical teaching since 2010. In 2018, during the final year of his PhD training in dental sciences in Chile, he was introduced to Cochrane by Professor Julio Villanueva Maffei, and performed his training in the Cochrane Associate Centre based in the Universidad de Chile Faculty of Dentistry. In 2020, he peer-reviewed two intervention reviews from the Cochrane Oral Health Group, a new one regarding the control of dental aerosols in clinical settings and one update about oral hygiene care for critically ill patients, both of priority interest during the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic. As a scientist, he is interested in the mammalian craniofacial bone biology and the impact of several clinical interventions on its homeostasis, from a translational research approach. Linked to his research interest, he is currently the first author of an ongoing Cochrane Systematic Review (protocol stage) with the Cochrane Movement Disorders Group from Portugal. His priorities in Colombia include the improvement of both the access to and the understanding of the high-quality evidence among clinicians, students/residents and patients, with the outstanding support of Cochrane Colombia and the Ibero-American Cochrane network.

Peter Gichuhi Mwethera, from Nairobi, Kenya, joined Cochrane in 2007 after being introduced by Prof. Charles Wiysonge and authoring a review for Cochrane STI. He currently works at a Primate Research Centre in Nairobi called the Institute of Primate Research (IPR) as a Senior Research Scientist in Reproductive Health. IPR is a premier biomedical primate institute whose mandate is to improve health by ethically utilizing the non-human primates. It is a WHO collaborating Institute and is also aaalac accredited. He also runs a company called Medicals Africa Limited, which administers reproductive health products that we developed, patented, and commercialized as a result of his research over the last 14 years. He is very passionate about reproductive health issues because reproductive health is one of the most neglected aspects of human health. His Cochrane review, Topical microbicides for preventing sexually transmitted infections, was updated in 2021. Following the outbreak of Covid pandemic, his institution was designated a Covid testing centre by the Kenyan Government, and he was appointed to coordinate the testing.

Nkengafac Villyen Motaze, from Cameroon, attended his first training on Cochrane reviews in 2010, organized by the Effective Care Research Unit in East London, South Africa. He proceeded to register his first Cochrane title in 2011, a few months prior to enrolling for his masters in Epidemiology. His first Cochrane review was published in 2013, and it served as his masters project. Ten years later, he has published several systematic reviews, facilitated about a dozen training sessions, and mentored novel authors in low- and middle-income countries. He has peer-reviewed Cochrane reviews for Effective Practice and Organization of Care and the Pregnancy and Childbirth review groups, and he is a member of the Cochrane Africa Network. As he prepares for his PhD graduation, which is coming up in a couple of months, he is embarking on an update of his first Cochrane review, while taking up further mentorship roles to ensure continuity and contribute to increasing the number of Cochrane authors on the African contintent.

Anelisa Jaca, a Postdoctoral Research Fellow based in the South African Medical Research Council, Cochrane South Africa, is a Medical Scientist by qualification. She did her MSc and PhD around cancer research specifically focusing on determining the biological pathways that contribute towards the development and progression of colon and stomach malignancies. After obtaining her PhD, she transitioned to Evidence-based Medicine, where she learnt about methods used to synthesise medical research evidence, important for making healthcare decisions and policy. Her current area of focus at Cochrane South Africa is on vaccine implementation research, around the factors that drive vaccine hesitancy in South Africa. She is also interested in fighting against the burden of cervical cancer through addressing Human papillomavirus (HPV) vaccine hesitancy in the South African context. 

Meghan Bohren, based in Australia, is a Senior Research Fellow in Gender and Women’s Health at the University of Melbourne and an Editor with Cochrane Effective Practice and Organisation of Care (EPOC). She was first introduced to Cochrane whilst  a PhD student and working with Metin Gülmezoglu at the WHO Department of Sexual and Reproductive Health and Research. At the time they were exploring how to better integrate qualitative evidence into WHO guidelines, in order to better understand people’s values, preferences and experiences of healthcare, as well as factors affecting implementation of interventions or models of care. Claire Glenton and Simon Lewin mentored Meghan in this space, and she was excited to join Cochrane Effective Practice and Organisation of Care as an editor in 2015. Meghan sat down with the Cochrane Early Career Professionals (ECP) group and shared some thoughts as part of the #WhereAreTheyNow series.

Alicia Aleman is currently based in Uruguay and works with the Cochrane Collaborating Group of Uruguay. She became aware of the Cochrane Library in 1995 when she was doing an internship at the Centro Latinoamericano de Perinatología, a center associated with the Pan American Health Organization/World Health Organization (PAHO/WHO). That year, the director of the center began promoting the use of scientific evidence in perinatal and  obstetric clinical practice and the use of the Cochrane Library in clinical decision-making. Since then, Alicia has been involved in teaching evidence-based medicine and in 2002, started her first Cochrane review (Bed rest during pregnancy for preventing miscarriage). After that, she continued working from the Faculty of Medicine (of which Alicia is an Associate Professor in the Department of Preventive and Social Medicine), giving courses in Evidence-Based Medicine, systematic reviews and clinical practice guidelines. In 2009, the Uruguayan Cochrane Group was created (coordinated by Dr. Oscar Gianneo) within the Ibero-American Cochrane network and in 2012 she did an internship at the IberoAmerican Cochrane Center.  Alicia is a contributor to the Uruguayan Cochrane group, giving courses, supporting translations, and collaborating with the active search programs for randomized studies published in Uruguay. Alicia sat down with the Cochrane Early Career Professionals (ECP) group and shared some thoughts as part of the #WhereAreTheyNow series in English and Spanish

Amr Elsareih, from Egypt, is a physical therapist interested electrophysical agents, especially electrical stimulation in neurological physical therapy, neurorehabilitation, and evidence-based practice. He first joined Cochrane in December 2019 when he signed up for Cochrane Crowd. Within days, he had classified more than 1000 records, and he soon earned eight Cochrane Crowd badges and completed the newcomer and student pathways. Among these is the purple badge in clinicial trial identification, which he earned with 99% accuracy. He's participated in Screen 4 Me classification for two systematic reviews. He first earned his Cochrane membership in January 2020, and is proud to continue to be a Cochrane member!

Matthew Page, from Australia, is a Senior Research Fellow at the School of Public Health and Preventive Medicine, Monash University. He is also a Co-Convenor of the Cochrane Bias Methods Group. In the final months of Matthew's undergraduate degree in psychology, he decided he should get some work experience for a year, before returning to study as a clinical neuropsychologist. Matthew saw an ad for a research assistant position at what was then the Australasian Cochrane Centre (now Cochrane Australia) and went for it, having taken an interest in meta-analysis during his psychology degree. Lucky for him, he got the job, started working there in 2008, fell in love with systematic review methodology, and gave up on his initial plan so he could focus on developing the science of how to conduct and report systematic reviews optimally. Matthew sat down with the Cochrane Early Career Professionals (ECP) group and shared some thoughts as part of the #WhereAreTheyNow series. 

Celeste Naude is currently based in South Africa. She is the Co-Director of Cochrane Nutrition and an Associate Editor with Cochrane Effective Practice and Organisation of Care (EPOC). Celeste is a mid-career professional and sat down with the Cochrane Early Career Professionals (ECP) group and shared some thoughts as part of the #WhereAreTheyNow series.  Celeste credits her introduction to and involvement with Cochrane to Prof Jimmy Volmink who introduced her to evidence synthesis research and the field of evidence-based health care. Jimmy, who was the Director of Cochrane South Africa at that point, invited Celeste to assist in a project called Supporting Policy-relevant Reviews and Trials (SUPPORT). At that time, the Cochrane EPOC satellite in Norway was coordinating efforts to produce SUPPORT Summaries of all low- and middle-income-relevant EPOC reviews and to make them freely available online. From there, Celeste joined an author team on a Cochrane review, and was subsequently involved in establishing and launching Cochrane Nutrition in 2016, the only Field hosted in a low and middle-income country. Celeste sat down with the Cochrane Early Career Professionals (ECP) - learn more and read her advice.

Cristian Herrera is currently based in France and Spain and is an Associate Editor for the Effective Practice and Organization of Care (EPOC) group and an editor in the Chilean EPOC satellite. When Cristian was a fifth year medical student, he joined a recently created health policy and systems research team at the P. Universidad Católica de Chile that was working on a Cochrane review. This connected him with the world of Cochrane and with the EPOC Group through a larger project led by a team from the Norwegian Knowledge Centre for the Health Services (this team is currently working in the Norwegian Institute of Public Health). So, starting out as an author was his entrance door to Cochrane. Cristian sat down with the Cochrane Early Career Professionals (ECP) - learn more and read his advice. Read in English and Spanish.

Zohra Lassi is a NHMRC Early Career Research Fellow at the University of Adelaide and a Feedback Editor with Cochrane Acute Respiratory Infections Group. She was first introduced to Cochrane Systematic Reviews while working as a Research Fellow at the Aga Khan University, Pakistan under the mentorship of Prof Zulfiqar Bhutta. Her very first Cochrane Systematic Review was with Cochrane Pregnancy and Childbirth Group on “Community based intervention packages for reducing maternal and neonatal morbidity and mortality and improving neonatal outcomes”. Zohra's first review led her to receive the Kenneth Warren Prize from  Cochrane for preparing a review of high methadological quality and relevant to health problems in developing countries. Since then, she has prepared more than 15 Systematic Reviews and Protocols.  

Jesse Uneke, from Nigeria, is the Director and Founder of the African Institute for Health Policy and Health Systems, Ebonyi State University, Nigeria. Jesse is also an Associate Editor with the Effective Practice and Organisation of Care (EPOC) group. Jesse was introduced to Cochrane by Dr Simon Lewin and got involved with the Cochrane Nigeria Centre. Jesse sat down with the Cochrane Early Career Professionals (ECP) - learn more and read his advice.

Joshua Vogel, from Australia, is a Principal Research Fellow at the Burnet Institute and an Associate Editor with Cochrane Pregnancy and Childbirth.  Joshua was first introduced to Cochrane & Cochrane Reviews while a PhD student. He had the good fortune to be working under Metin Gülmezoglu at the Department of Sexual and Reproductive Health and Research at WHO in Geneva. Metin is a long-time Cochranite and had been deeply involved with Cochrane Pregnancy and Childbirth since the 1990’s. Joshua explains his first review was pretty modest (with only 3 trials) but he was hooked from there on. Joshua sat down with the Cochrane Early Career Professionals (ECP) - learn more and read his advice.

Nayaar Islam, from Canada, is a MSc Epidemiology student who was introduced to Cochrane by her graduate thesis supervisor, Dr. Matthew McInnes, who is a member of the Cochrane COVID-19 Diagnostic Test Accuracy Group. Nayaar is the lead author of the first and second updates of the Cochrane ‘living’ systematic review titled “Thoracic imaging tests for the diagnosis of COVID-19”, and she will continue to support future updates of this review. Nayaar is grateful for the opportunities she has been offered through Cochrane, such as collaborating with an international team of Cochrane scientists, being interviewed for a featured Cochrane Podcast, and of course, leading the production of high-quality evidence to inform healthcare decisions during the COVID-19 pandemic. Being a part of #TeamCochrane has been an extremely rewarding experience for Nayaar and she is excited to continue with her involvement!

Jun Xia, is based in the UK and China, and is the Co-director of the Nottingham Ningbo GRADE Centre Network and an Editor for the Cochrane Schizophrenia Group. She was introduced to Cochrane by Professor Clive Adams, the founding Editor of Cochrane Schizophrenia Group. He introduced her to the concept of evidence-based medicine, the history and mission of Cochrane, and taught her the skills of conducting a rigorous systematic review. She stayed with the Schizophrenia Group for the next 15 years and worked as a review author, trainer, and now as the Group’s Editor. A major part of her work involves bring Cochrane reviews to China, where she delivered over 80 workshops in the past decade. In 2019, together with nine other Chinese universities/hospitals, she helped to formed the Cochrane China Network, to expand the reach and advocating for evidence-based healthcare decision making. Jun spoke with the Cochrane Early Career Professionals - learn more and read her advice! 

Martin Ringsten, from Sweden, first became involved in Cochrane through a one-week systematic review course introducing the Cochrane Methodology conducted by Cochrane Sweden in 2018. The course really matched his interest in evidence-based medicine at the time. Afterwards, he started to contribute to Cochrane Sweden as a volunteer, together with his usual clinical work, further studies, and teaching at Lund University. This all led him to take a position at Cochrane Sweden in 2020 as a Project coordinator and researcher in combination with doing a PhD in Medical Science. In his current work, he initiates, organizes, and executes different projects, like organizing courses and workshops, expanding our network within Sweden and collaborating with different people and organizations to expand the reach of resources and reviews from Cochrane. For him, being able to work towards facilitating the creation and implementation of high-quality evidence in healthcare and making decisions more evidence-informed is something he values and feels truly lucky to be doing on a daily basis!

 

Eyelin Ahmadi, from Iran, is a nurse that became acquainted with Cochrane while learning about treatment options for her hospitalized patients. She soon began using Cochrane evidence to educate her patients and encouraged her colleagues to use the Cochrane Library to read the latest synthesized health evidence. Eyelin earned her Cochrane membership by translating evidence from Persian for Cochrane reviews, participating in review production by assisting with data extraction, and as a consumer peer reviewer of Cochrane reviews. She has volunteered for tasks on Cochrane TaskExchange, and she's proud to be a part of Cochrane!

Cathal Cadogan, from Ireland, is a Senior Lecturer at the School of Pharmacy and Pharmaceutical Sciences, Trinity College Dublin. He is also an Associate Editor with the Effective Practice and Organisation of Care (EPOC) group. Cathal first got involved with Cochrane when he began working with Prof. Carmel Hughes as a post-doctoral research fellow in Queen’s University Belfast. Cahal remembers his first task as part of that role was to update the existing Cochrane review on interventions to improve appropriate polypharmacy for older people. The experience taught him a lot about the Cochrane review process and has helped him in conducting other systematic reviews. Cahal spoke with the Cochrane Early Career Professionals - learn more and read his advice!

Cynthia S Srikesavan, from the UK, is a Postdoctoral researcher in Physiotherapy at the University of Oxford. She has been part of Cochrane since 2013 and has contributed as a Cochrane author on two reviews. Between 2014 and 2016, she was part of Cochrane South Asia as a volunteer translator of plain language summaries and a podcast producer in Tamil. Her Cochrane translation work in Tamil was recognised at the University of Oxford’s OxTALENT annual awards 2016, and she was the runner-up for her submission "High Quality Physiotherapy Evidence in Tamil" in the Academic Podcasting category. Her video resource explaining the findings of a Cochrane review won first prize at the Cochrane UK and Ireland Symposium 2017. She is so proud to be part of Team Cochrane!

Masahiro Banno, from Nagoya, Japan, joined Cochrane in 2019 as a co-author of an ongoing Cochrane review. He is a psychiatrist and has translated more than 100 plain language summaries of Cochrane reviews from English to Japanese as a 2020 top 5 translator for Cochrane Japan, and he has reviewed more than 20 Cochrane reviews (protocols or full reviews) as a regular peer-reviewer for Cochrane Schizophrenia. He has been involved in 3 ongoing Cochrane reviews. He also worked as a lecturer for the 2019 and 2020 Cochrane Diagnostic Test Accuracy (DTA) workshops held by Cochrane Japan. This led to the development of CAST-HSROC, a software for meta-analysis of DTA, with Dr. Yuki Kataoka and Dr. Yasushi Tsujimoto, the main lecturers of the workshop, and the publication of a paper on the software. He hopes that by playing a variety of roles at Cochrane, he can broaden his horizons and contribute in some small ways to making the world a better place.

 
Nimisha Kumar,  from the United States, is a fourth-year medical student and hopeful future OB/Gyn coming off of a research year as the inaugural Cochrane Fellow of the recently established US Satellite of the Cochrane Pregnancy & Childbirth Group (US-PCG) at the Indiana University School of Medicine. During her time as the Fellow, she has worked on three PCG reviews, carried out a prioritization process, and served as liaison to the Cochrane US Network. As part of the US Network, she served as part of the Opioid Workgroup, designed to update and initiate reviews geared towards addressing the effects of the opioid epidemic in the US with regards to mothers and infants. Learn more about her story in this news item and video!

Chris Rose, from Norway, is a statistician with the Cochrane Effective Practice and Organisation of Care (EPOC) group, Norwegian Satellite. In 2018, he was appointed as a statistician at the Norwegian Institute of Public Health, with part of his salary funded to work as a statistical editor for Cochrane EPOC. Chris' Cochrane-related work is a mix of peer-reviewing (of protocols and submitted systematic reviews), consulting (performing analyses for review teams that are not supported by RevMan), and teaching (delivering training on systematic reviewing). Chris spoke with the Cochrane Early Career Professionals - learn more and read his advice!

 

Abhijna Vithal Yergolkar, from India, is a pharmacy student who learned about Cochrane from a teacher. She joined Cochrane in September 2019 when she started screening RCTs on Cochrane Crowd. To date, she has done more than 31,000 classifications and earned 6 badges, with 92-99% accuracy for RCT identification. She has taken part in 10 global challenges and completed 8 Screen 4 Me tasks, and she was one of the top three screeners in the Chile Challenge 2019. Abhijna is also a part of Cochrane TaskExchange, where she has contributed to 20 tasks and has learned a lot from participating in systematic reviews. She is currently working on a Cochrane Review for the Lung Cancer group, and she looks forward to contributing more to evidence-based medicine through this and future research. Being a part of Cochrane completely changed the way she sees evidence-based medicine and helped her to connect with researchers all around the world. She feels very fortunate and is thrilled to be a part of Cochrane!

Mohammad Shahbaz, an epidemiologist from Iran, first became involved in Cochrane by screening abstracts on Cochrane Crowd and for Screen4Me projects there. Soon, he had evaluated more than 1100 abstracts and earned his Cochrane membership! After becoming a member, he continued to contribute as part of the Crowd and has also attended methods webinars, read Cochrane reviews, and used online Cochrane learning materials. He participated in Cochrane International Mobility in Croatia under the direction of Dr. Tina Poklepović Peričić. Mohammad will begin a PhD in epidemiology and causal inference post-COVID. He is so proud to be a part of the Cochrane Community, strongly believes in the collaboration evident in Cochrane programs and tasks, and knows he is helping contribute to public health problems by being involved with Cochrane!

Fatima Abbas, from Syria, is a doctor, recently graduated from Damascus University. She has been a member of the Cochrane Community since 2014, when she joined the group now called Cochrane Gut with a group of fellow medical students from Syria, publishing a Cochrane Review protocol and working on the full Review. She later joined the Cochrane Trainers' Network and became a Cochrane champion in Syria by leading and coordinating 4 training workshops to introduce medical students and young career professionals to Cochrane, help them learn the flow of Cochrane work, how to write a systematic review protocol, and share basic knowledge about systematic reviews and meta analysis. More than 7 publications resulted from these workshops during the time of crisis in Syria, with very limited resources and a great passion to work among the working group members. She founded an educational research group in Syria through which she was promoting evidence-based medicine practice, sharing the latest evidence among residents and peer-teaching her colleagues on how to use evidence in practice. She is now in an internship program in France. She feels privileged to be a part of the Cochrane community, and hopes to connect with other colleagues in person to exchange ideas, experiences and learn from all.

René Spijker, from the Netherlands, is an Information Specialist and Senior Scientist with Cochrane Netherlands, a member of the Information Specialist Executive, a member of the Cochrane Council and  a Co-Author of the Diagnostic Test Accuracy (DTA) handbook. 

René first got involved with Cochrane as he felt he needed a career change from a molecular biology science background and applied on a joint information specialist job between Cochrane and the medical library. Reading up on Cochrane, of which he hadn’t heard before, sparked his interest as it was international, had admirable goals, was involved with science, but most importantly, also focused on the application of the outcomes. René spoke with the Cochrane Early Career Professionals - learn more and read his advice!

Hebatullah Abdulazeem, from Egypt and living in Germany, is a family physician with great interest in scientific research. She first joined Cochrane Crowd in March 2018, and within 3 months, she had classified more than 5,000 records, which were part of Crowd's 2nd birthday total of 2 Million classifications! After that very enthusiastic start, she has now completed more than 25,000 classifications, and she received her 5-year Cochrane membership with excitement. Via the Cochrane Task Exchange platform, she has been involved with more than 20 systematic reviews, and has worked with extraordinary people from all over the world. She has even tried to help other people learn about TaskExchange in her native language, Arabic. She also participated with the PICO annotators and in the QA Dashboard. She is thrilled that joining Cochrane is possible for experts or citizen scientists!

Vighnesh Devulapalli, from India, is a Third Year Medical student at Dr.NTR University of Health Sciences in Vijayawada. He joined Cochrane as a volunteer in May 2020, earning a five-year Cochrane membership from his contributions to Cochrane Crowd in just a few short months.  His contributions include a total of 20846 classification of records, with an accuracy rate of 99% in ICTRP identification, 98% in CT identification and 89% in RCT identification. Apart from that, he has participated in 4 Global Crowd Screening Challenges, including the global screening challenge on World Evidence-Based Healthcare Day, where he was one of the top screening members (screened close to half of 10,000 records), for which he received an appreciation mail and reward. He has since been inducted into a special group of screeners for Cochrane Crowd for certain screening tasks, and he continues to contribute. Vighnesh is actively completing Cochrane Interactive Learning modules and is a member of Students 4 Best Evidence (S4BE), for which he is currently drafting a blogpost.

Ana Beatriz Pizarro Nule, from Colombia, first earned her Cochrane Membership in 2018 as a Cochrane Crowd citizen scientist supporting screening challenges and by offering her skills on Cochrane Task Exchange. She represented Colombia as a content creator for the 2019 Virtual Cochrane Colloquium, has written blogs for Students for Best Evidence (S4BE), and collaborated with the Cochrane-Wikipedia partnership. This year, she became part of Cochrane Interantional Mobility with Cochrane Sweden, and shared her experience in June at the Early Career Professionals online meet-up about research collaborations. She is the Consumer Network Coordinator for Cochrane Colombia and author of an ongoing Cochrane review. She is currently serving as dissemination and outreach coordinator of the upcoming Spanish version of S4BE "Estudiantes x La Mejor Evidencia". What she values most about being a Cochrane member is that it allows her to be part of an international community that shares her passion for improving health evidence.

Chun Hoong Wong, from Malaysia, joined Cochrane in 2017 as a volunteer translator for Cochrane Malaysia. As an outpatient pharmacist at a government health clinic, Chun Hoong believes that health information should not be restricted to healthcare professionals, but needs to be accessible and comprehensible in languages that people understand. He started with the translation of podcasts and Plain Language Summaries (PLS)  from English to Malay and has now success-fully performed over 700 translations to Malay. In 2018, he expanded his translation activities to Simplified Chinese and Traditional Chinese with Cochrane China  and Cochrane Taiwan  for the translation of abstracts and/or PLS. He became the first volunteer at Cochrane First Aid in 2019, only days after the Field’s launch, and is now active as a knowledge translation product generator and translator for them, creating blogshots in English and then translating  them to the other languages in which he is fluent. More details on Chun Hoong’s Cochrane story can be found in his recent blog  for Cochrane First Aid.

Xun Li (Tina), from Beijig City, China, first joined Cochrane China back in 2007 as an undergraduate student and began to translate abstracts of Cochrane reviews. She translated more than 10 of the Cochrane review abstracts in the CAM field and published them in Chinese journals. At the same time, she joined CENTRAL database establishment by translating the citations of trials about traditional Chinese medicine that were published in Chinese. Since 2014, she has coordinated the simplified Chinese translation and dissemination of Cochrane evidence. Currently, her team has submitted more than 25000 citations to CENTRAL, and 1240 abstracts and plain language summaries of Cochrane reviews have been translated into simplified Chinese. More than 500 of these have been disseminated with China social media WeChat. She is proud to see how researchers in China have progressed in recent years; there are now more than 400 volunteers in China working for the translation and dissemination of Cochrane knowledge. 

Yasushi Tsujimoto, from Osaka City, Japan, joined Cochrane in 2019 as a part of Cochrane Japan. He is a full-time nephrologist and has been involved in more than 10 Cochrane reviews, including in Cochrane Kidney and Transplant. He has been working to promote Cochrane’s activities with social media such as Twitter or Facebook in Japan. Since he became the PR manager, Cochrane Japan’s Twitter following has increased enormously. He credits the Japanese translation team for the great job they are doing, which has led to an increase in outreach and widespread awareness. He is also interested in building on-line education system that allows health care workers to learn more effectively.

Tiffany Duque, from the United States, joined Cochrane this year as the Coordinator for the Cochrane US Network (@Cochrane_US).  She has worked in global public health for 20 years and currently lives with her family in the Los Angeles area of California.  She joined Cochrane in June and has been very impressed with the dedication, warmth, and positivity from all of the US Network members as well as from Cochrane staff.  She is thrilled to join such a reputable organization and looks forward to the opportunity to grow, create collaborations, advocate for, and promote sustainability within both the US Network and Cochrane as a whole.  If you haven’t had the chance to connect with Tiffany, she’d love to hear from you.  Here’s hoping for in-person meetings in 2021 so she can meet all of her colleagues! 

Jordi Pardo Pardo, born in Barcelona but living in Quebec, is currently Co-Managing Editor of Cochrane Musculsokeletal. Jordi joined Cochrane in November 1997. He came in as a young journalist that had no idea about health research, but he fell in love with the organization and has played many roles in it, from the Iberoamerican Cochrane Centre, the Lung Cancer Group, the Campbell and Cochrane Equity Methods Group and Cochrane Musculoskeletal. Jordi really enjoyed contributing with the first steps of the Spanish translation of reviews, and how they experimented with different processes to make the dream of having all Cochrane reviews in Spanish a reality. Jordi enjoys Colloquia so much that he helped to organize two and provided countless hours in committees for several others. Jordi also enjoyed contributing on the two waves of the Capacity Building for Managing Editors Survey. Getting an insight of the needs of those who oil the process of editing a review to get it out with the level of quality that Cochrane expects was a great opportunity to see how differently we all work, a challenge to find common ways to improve and a pleasure to see the amount of talent we have in the organization.

Roses Parker, from England, joined Cochrane in September 2019 after completing her PhD in December 2018 and having a baby in January 2019. She is the Network Support Fellow for the MOSS Network. She has enjoyed working on the Plain Language Summaries project, and completing an audit of MOSS prioritisation work. Roses is particularly proud of the citation rates for MOSS Reviews in Wikipedia and setting up the SoMe Cuppa Club for MOSS members to discuss and encourage each others’ social media use. New projects she's looking forward to include a stakeholder engagement project, increasing collaboration with Cochrane Methods and Fields, and a Network Innovation Fund project to investigate the optimal methods for the use of ‘pain’ as an outcome in systematic reviews of post-operative pain management.

Mikhail Kukushkin, from Russia, joined Cochrane in 2016. He started off contributing to Cochrane's Russian Translation Project as a volunteer translator and then as a volunteer editor, successfully reaching nearly 600 translated/edited Cochrane Plain Language Summaries. It has been a great pleasure and honor for him to work at Cochrane Russia and contribute to Russian Translations of Cochrane Evidence and to Cochrane Russia's evaluation of quality of machine translators in Memsource. He noticed that during the last 3-4 years, Cochrane’s publicity in Russia increased substantially, and he is very happy and proud of this. He hopes that in future, Cochrane's work won't face significant obstacles, both in Russia and globally, because now is not the time for misunderstanding between the participants of health care systems.

Rachel Klabunde, from Chile, joined Cochrane in 2019 helping the Cochrane Chile team to plan the 2019 Cochrane Colloquium in Santiago. She now works as part of the Community Support team in People Services and as a Communication Officer in the Knowledge Translation Department of the Cochrane Central Executive Team. Due to widespread violence and civil unrest in Santiago, the Cochrane Colloquium was canceled. Our annual event would have featured a four-day, wide-reaching scientific programme entitled ‘Embracing Diversity’ as well as a Gala Dinner open to all delegates. Due to the cancellation, all the pre-ordered food including catering provisions for a three-course Gala dinner was donated to a local charity in Santiago. Turning this negative moment into something positive is definitely something to be proud of!

Muriah Umoquit, from Canada, joined Cochrane in 2015. Working in the Knowledge Translation Department of the Central Executive Team, she  is a self-proclaimed 'Cochrane Fangirl'. Knowing how daunting rows of academic posters can be, she was thrilled to work on a project bringing branded #BetterPoster templates to disseminate Cochrane work at Colloquia and other academic conferences.  You can view many of these posters from our virtual 2019 Colloquium - including hers!

 

We want to come together and tell our collective and individual Cochrane stories! To share your #MyCochraneStory please contact support@cochrane.org with the following:

• A photo: At your desk, at Cochrane event, or a headshot.
• Your country of residence: Our community is diverse and we want to celebrate this!
• Your Cochrane Story: We want to hear about  what Cochrane work and achievements you are most proud of! 3-4 sentences about yourself and your story and any URLs that could be included.

Wednesday, June 12, 2024

 See below for a listing of some important links from Cochrane. You can also use the search bar on our website to find the information you need. 

Take the #CochraneMethods Challenge

Help - FAQs and ticketed support

Cochrane Crowd - citizen scientist platform

Cochrane Engage - find volunteer tasks that match your expertise 

Cochrane Evidence Synthesis and Methods - an open access journal 

• Check if your open access fees are covered

Cochrane International Mobility Programme - virtual and in-person placements with Cochrane groups

Cochrane Library - search and read full Cochrane reviews

Cochrane Training - online and in-person training experiences 

• Cochrane Evidence Essentials - free online resource offering an introduction to health evidence and how to make informed health choices.
• Cochrane Handbook for Systematic Reviews of Interventions
• Cochrane Handbook for Diagnostic Test Accuracy

Join Cochrane

• Be involved in Cochrane as a patient or carer via Cochrane Consumer Network

Let's get social - see Cochrane's social media platforms and learn how you can earn Membership points 

Tuesday, November 19, 2024

Cochrane systematic reviews can help us to make healthcare decisions based on up-to-date research evidence. They are systematic because they search for and analyse evidence in a systematic way, according to predetermined and published methods. Each systematic review answers a specific healthcare question by gathering all the relevant studies, assessing the reliability of these studies, then summarising their results to produce a summary of all of the available evidence.

One type of systematic review is a diagnostic test accuracy (DTA) review. In addition to investigating test accuracy, they ideally also investigate why the results may vary among studies, compare the performance of alternative tests, and help the reader to put the evidence in a clinical context. Watch the video below and read on to learn more about DTA reviews.

Cochrane DTA reviews are a type of systematic review that aim to evaluate the accuracy of diagnostic tests. They want to find out whether a new test is more accurate than an existing test, or whether it is quicker, cheaper or easier to perform. Answers to these questions help patients and healthcare workers make informed decisions about which test to use, based on up-to-date evidence. 

DTA reviews evaluate how well diagnostic tests (index tests) identify or exclude a particular disease or condition (the target condition). We know that diagnostic tests make errors, even when they are correctly performed. There are two types of test errors: false positive test errors (the index test suggests the target condition is present when it is not) and false negative test errors (the test suggests the target condition is absent when it is not). Cochrane DTA reviews can cover all types of diagnostic tests, from antibody tests to X-rays, for any disease or condition. It is really important that diagnostic tests provide accurate results so that people can receive prompt treatment or take preventive measures if necessary, and to avoid unnecessary testing, treatment and anxiety. 

DTA reviews search for all relevant test accuracy studies, appraise the studies for reliability, and combine their results. This gives the best possible estimate of the accuracy of an index test based on all the available evidence. DTA reviews are systematic because they search for and analyze evidence in a systematic way, according to predetermined and published methods.

Test accuracy studies most often report accuracy using sensitivity and specificity. 

• Sensitivity means the proportion of people with the target condition who are correctly detected by the index test. 
• Specificity means the proportion of people without the target condition who are correctly identified by the index test. 

Therefore, the nearer the sensitivity and specificity are to 100%, the better the test.

An alternative way to report test accuracy is using positive and negative predictive values, which tell us about the usefulness of a positive index test result and a negative index test respectively – this helps patients understand how reliable their test results are. Predictive values measure the number of positive index test results that will be true positives and the number of negative index test results that will be true negatives. The nearer the positive and negative predictive values are to 100%, the better the test. 

• View Cochrane DTA training for authors
• Visit the Cochrane Screening and Diagnostic Test Methods group website
• Read the Students 4 Best Evidence blog post 'Diagnostics Studies: how to get started with appraising the evidence'
• Learn more: What is the difference between a Cochrane systematic review of interventions and a Cochrane diagnostic test accuracy review?

Friday, March 22, 2024

We aim to put Cochrane evidence at the heart of health decision-making all over the world. This not only means producing high-quality and relevant systematic reviews but making sure that our evidence is accessible and advocating for evidence. Join us on social media to learn more about the work we do, our community, and the health evidence we produce.

You can access Cochrane evidence and news on your favourite social media platform! Follow us on:

• X - @CochraneCollab @CochraneLibrary @CochraneConsumr 
• Facebook - Cochrane,  Cochrane Library and Cochrane Consumer Network
• YouTube
• Instagram - @Cochraneorg
• LinkedIn

We love to engage with our Community   Be sure to tag a Cochrane social media account  so that we see the post. 

Share a picture of you enjoying Cochrane training, using the Cochrane Handbook, or share the latest Cochrane evidence. Your social media posts can earn you contribution points to work towards gaining full Cochrane Membership! Share, tag us, and add  your contribution to your free account. 

If you're interested in learning more about sharing on social media, check out these resources:

• Cochrane social media tips
• Checklist for disseminating health evidence
• Guide to choosing images when sharing health evidence

Wednesday, August 14, 2024