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PrintOur resources and collaborators
McMaster University has an international reputation for excellence in evidence-based medicine and problem-based learning. Home to internationally recognized experts in healthcare and health, knowledge translation, deliberative dialogues and public engagement, the University also has a long tradition of encouraging and supporting multi-disciplinary research and collaboration.
The Forum builds on this history of creativity, innovation and excellence to prepare action-oriented leaders to address pressing health challenges.
Forum tools
The Forum’s Director has created or co-created a number of tools to support individuals and groups committed to harnessing the best available research evidence to strengthen health systems.
Finding and using research evidence (PDF)
This tool summarizes the key steps involved in working through how to address a pressing health challenge, and provides links to the best available sources of research evidence to address the many questions that arise in each of these steps. The tool also provides reminders about the importance of assessing the quality of any available systematic reviews and the local applicability of the findings from these reviews, as well as a reminder about how quotation marks, Boolean operators (and, or, not) and wildcards can assist in searching for the best available research evidence.
SUPPORT Tools for evidence-informed Policymaking (PDF)
This series of tools provides practical advice about and worked examples of the many steps involved in working through how to address a pressing health challenge and in supporting the use of research evidence in policymaking more generally. The introduction gives an overview of the series, and each of the individual tools can be opened by clicking on the corresponding hypertext link.
Using Health Systems Evidence (PDF)
This tool describes how to make the most of Health Systems Evidence, which is described below.
Forum resources
McMaster's unique concentration of basic scientific, clinical and policy research has produced world recognized resources that support the Forum's work.
Health Systems Evidence
Health Systems Evidence is an easy‐to‐search and continuously updated online repository of synthesized research evidence related to governance, financial and delivery arrangements in health systems and to implementation strategies that can support change within health systems. It contains details about all the policy briefs, overviews of systematic reviews, systematic reviews, and protocols of systematic reviews relevant to health systems, as well as links to any user-friendly summaries, scientific abstracts and full-text reports that are currently available for these syntheses. Researcher Michael Wilson received a 2008-2009 CIHR Institute of Health Services and Policy Research (IHSPR) Rising Star Award for his contributions to the database as a knowledge-translation vehicle.
Health-evidence.ca
Health Evidence.ca searches for, screens and rates systematic reviews, primarily for an audience of public health decision makers.
McMaster Health Knowledge Refinery (HKR)
The McMaster Health Knowledge Refinery encompasses a collection of projects of the Health Information Research Unit (HiRU) related to the retrieval, appraisal, classification, organization, dissemination and uptake of evidence from research that is of direct relevance to human health care. Projects such as EvidenceUpdates and KT+ use the McMaster's Premium LiteratUre Service or PLUS to bring critically appraised articles that are methodologically sound and relevant to clinicians, policymakers, and other stakeholders.
McMaster collaborators
Collaborations for Health
Collaborations is an inter-Faculty and inter-disciplinary University-wide effort to promote cutting-edge, interdisciplinary research to help McMaster University reach the next level of research and education for health. Collaborations is the University sponsor of the Forum.
Lyons New Media Centre
The Lyons New Media Centre supports and promotes the innovative and effective use of new and traditional media in teaching, learning and research at the University. It is also host to collections of audio visual and electronic materials, such as feature films, specialized videos for classroom or individual study, and slides collections. The Forum and Lyons will share space on the 4th Floor of Mills Memorial Library, opening opportunity for exciting collaborations.
Centre for Health Evidence and Policy Analysis – CHEPA
Founded in 1987, CHEPA is a world-class interdisciplinary health research centre that is home to the largest concentration of health economists and health policy analysts in Canada. Several CHEPA faculty are affiliates of the Forum, including the Forum Director, and many of CHEPA's research products and networks are drawn upon in preparing evidence briefs to inform Stakeholder Dialogues and Citizen Panels.