scholarly journals Development of methodological guidance, publication standards and training materials for realist and meta-narrative reviews: the RAMESES (Realist And Meta-narrative Evidence Syntheses – Evolving Standards) project

2014 ◽  
Vol 2 (30) ◽  
pp. 1-252 ◽  
Author(s):  
Geoff Wong ◽  
Trish Greenhalgh ◽  
Gill Westhorp ◽  
Ray Pawson
Keyword(s):  
Evidence Synthesis ◽  
Good Practice ◽  
Quality Standards ◽  
Mailing List ◽  
Delphi Panel ◽  
Secondary Research ◽  
Training Materials ◽  
Time Problem ◽  
And Training ◽  
Publication Standards

BackgroundThere is growing interest in theory-driven, qualitative and mixed-method approaches to systematic review, such as realist and meta-narrative review. These approaches offer the potential to expand the knowledge base in policy-relevant areas. However, the quality of such reviews can be difficult to assess.ObjectivesThe aim of this project was to produce methodological guidance, publication standards and training resources for those seeking to undertake realist and/or meta-narrative reviews.Methods/designWe (1) collated and summarised existing literature on the principles of good practice in realist and meta-narrative systematic reviews; (2) considered the extent to which these principles had been followed by published and in-progress reviews, thereby identifying how rigour may have been lost and how existing methods could be improved; (3) used an online Delphi method with an interdisciplinary panel of experts from academia and policy, to produce a draft set of methodological steps and publication standards; (4) produced training materials with learning objectives linked to these steps; (5) refined these standards and training materials prospectively on real reviews in progress, capturing methodological and other challenges as they arose; (6) synthesised expert input, evidence review and real-time problem analysis into more definitive guidance and standards; and (7) disseminated outputs to audiences in academia and policy.ResultsAn important element of this study was the establishment of an e-mail mailing list to bring together researches in the field (www.jiscmail.ac.uk/RAMESES). Our literature review identified 35 and nine realist and meta-narrative reviews respectively. Analysis and discussion within the project team produced a summary of the published literature, and common questions and challenges into briefing materials for the Delphi panel, comprising 37 and 33 members (for realist and meta-narrative reviews respectively). Within three rounds this panel had reached a consensus on 19 (realist) and 20 (meta-narrative) key publication standards, with an overall response rate of 90% and 91% respectively. The Realist And Meta-narrative Evidence Syntheses – Evolving Standards (RAMESES) publication standards for realist syntheses and meta-narrative reviews were published in open-access journals and quickly became highly accessed. The RAMESES quality standards and training materials drew together the following sources of data: (1) personal expertise as researchers and trainers; (2) data from the Delphi panels; (3) feedback from participants at training sessions we ran; and (4) comments made on RAMESES mailing list. The quality standards and training materials are freely available online (www.ramesesproject.org).DiscussionThe production of these standards and guidance drew on multiple sources of knowledge and expertise, and a high degree of a consensus was achieved despite ongoing debate among researchers about the overall place of these methodologies in the secondary research toolkit. As with all secondary research methods, guidance on quality assurance and uniform reporting is an important step towards improving quality and consistency of studies. We anticipate that as more reviews are undertaken, further refinement will be needed to the publication and quality standards and training materials.LimitationsThe project’s outputs are not definitive and in the future updating and further development is likely to be needed.ConclusionAn initial set of publication standards, quality standards and training materials have been produced for researchers, users and funders of realist or meta-narrative reviews. As realist and meta-narrative reviews are relatively new approaches to evidence synthesis, methodological development is needed for both review approaches.FundingThe National Institute for Health Research Health Services and Delivery Research programme.

scholarly journals Quality and reporting standards, resources, training materials and information for realist evaluation: the RAMESES II project

2017 ◽  
Vol 5 (28) ◽  
pp. 1-108 ◽  
Author(s):  
Geoff Wong ◽  
Gill Westhorp ◽  
Joanne Greenhalgh ◽  
Ana Manzano ◽  
Justin Jagosh ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Literature Review ◽  
Complex Interventions ◽  
Research Programme ◽  
Quality Standards ◽  
Research Capacity ◽  
Realist Evaluation ◽  
Delphi Panel ◽  
Reporting Standards ◽  
Training Materials ◽  
And Training

BackgroundMany of the problems confronting policy- and decision-makers, evaluators and researchers today are complex, as are the interventions designed to tackle them. Their success depends both on individuals’ responses and on the wider context of people’s lives. Realist evaluation tries to make sense of these complex interventions. It is a form of theory-driven evaluation, based on realist philosophy, that aims to understand why these complex interventions work, how, for whom, in what context and to what extent.ObjectivesOur objectives were to develop (a) quality standards, (b) reporting standards, (c) resources and training materials, (d) information and resources for patients and other lay participants and (e) to build research capacity among those interested in realist evaluation.MethodsTo develop the quality and reporting standards, we undertook a thematic review of the literature, supplemented by our content expertise and feedback from presentations and workshops. We synthesised findings into briefing materials for realist evaluations for the Delphi panel (a structured method using experts to develop consensus). To develop our resources and training materials, we drew on our experience in developing and delivering education materials, feedback from the Delphi panel, the RAMESES JISCMail e-mail list, training workshops and feedback from training sessions. To develop information and resources for patients and other lay participants in realist evaluation, we convened a group consisting of patients and the public. We built research capacity by running workshops and training sessions.ResultsOur literature review identified 152 realist evaluations, and when 37 of these had been analysed we were able to develop our briefing materials for the Delphi panel. The Delphi panel comprised 35 members from 27 organisations across six countries and five disciplines. Within three rounds, the panels had reached a consensus on 20 key reporting standards. The quality standards consist of eight criteria for realist evaluations. We developed resources and training materials for 15 theoretical and methodological topics. All resources are available online (www.ramesesproject.org). We provided methodological support to 17 projects and presentations or workshops to help build research capacity in realist evaluations to 29 organisations. Finally, we produced a generic patient information leaflet for lay participants in realist evaluations.LimitationsOur project had ambitious goals that created a substantial workload, leading to the need to prioritise objectives. For example, we truncated the literature review and focused on standards and training material development.ConclusionsAlthough realist evaluation holds much promise, misunderstandings and misapplications of it are common. We hope that our project’s outputs and activities will help to address these problems. Our resources are the start of an iterative journey of refinement and development of better resources for realist evaluations. The RAMESES II project seeks not to produce the last word on these issues, but to capture current expertise and establish an agreed state of the science. Much methodological development is needed in realist evaluation but this can take place only if there is a sufficient pool of highly skilled realist evaluators. Capacity building is the next key step in realist evaluation.FundingThe National Institute for Health Research Health Services and Delivery Research programme.

scholarly journals Protocol for a scoping review to identify and map in-service education and training materials for midwifery care in sub-Saharan Africa from 2000 to 2020

BMJ Open ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (3) ◽  
pp. e047118
Author(s):  
Joanne Welsh ◽  
Mechthild M Gross ◽  
Claudia Hanson ◽  
Hashim Hounkpatin ◽  
Ann-Beth Moller
Keyword(s):  
Scoping Review ◽  
Maternal Mortality Ratio ◽  
Newborn Care ◽  
Education And Training ◽  
Sub Saharan Africa ◽  
Midwifery Care ◽  
Training Materials ◽  
Service Training ◽  
Sub Saharan ◽  
And Training

IntroductionMaternal and neonatal mortality are disproportionally high in low-and middle-income countries. In 2017 the global maternal mortality ratio was estimated to be 211 per 100 000 live births. An estimated 66% of these deaths occurred in sub-Saharan Africa. Training programmes that aim to prepare providers of midwifery care vary considerably across sub-Saharan Africa in terms of length, content and quality. To overcome the shortfalls of pre-service training and support the provision of quality care, in-service training packages for providers of midwifery care have been developed and implemented in many countries in sub-Saharan Africa. We aim to identify what in-service education and training materials have been used for providers of midwifery care between 2000 and 2020 and map their content to the International Confederation of Midwives’ Essential Competencies for Midwifery Practice (ICM Competencies), and the Lancet Midwifery Series Quality Maternal and Newborn Care (QMNC) framework.Methods and analysisA search will be conducted for the years 2000–2020 in Cumulative Index of Nursing and Allied Health Literature, PubMed/MEDLINE, Social Sciences Citation Index, African Index Medicus and Google Scholar. A manual search of reference lists from identified studies and a hand search of literature from international partner organisations will be performed. Information retrieved will include study context, providers trained, focus of training and design of training. Original content of identified education and training materials will be obtained and mapped to the ICM Competencies and the Lancet Series QMNC.Ethics and disseminationA scoping review is a secondary analysis of published literature and does not require ethical approval. This scoping review will give an overview of the education and training materials used for in-service training for providers of midwifery care in sub-Saharan Africa. Mapping the content of these education and training materials to the ICM Competencies and The Lancet Series QMNC will allow us to assess their appropriateness. Findings from the review will be reflected to stakeholders involved in the design and implementation of such materials. Additionally, findings will be published in a peer-reviewed journal, and used to inform the design and content of an in-service training package for providers of midwifery care as part of the Action Leveraging Evidence to Reduce perinatal morTality and morbidity (ALERT) study, (https://alert.ki.se/) a multi-country study in Benin, Malawi, Tanzania and Uganda.Trial registration numberPACTR202006793783148; Post-results.

scholarly journals A more comprehensive approach offering instruments in one portal to facilitate higher uptake

2020 ◽  
Vol 30 (Supplement_5) ◽  
Author(s):  
C Rossmann ◽  
F De Bock
Keyword(s):  
Health Promotion ◽  
Best Practice ◽  
Evidence Synthesis ◽  
Good Practice ◽  
Community Setting ◽  
Comprehensive Approach ◽  
Added Value ◽  
Assessment Instruments ◽  
Policy Makers ◽  
Activity Promotion

Abstract The good practice portal of the Federal Centre for Health Education (BZgA) consists of a nationwide collection of projects and interventions to promote the health of socially disadvantaged groups at community/setting level. An exchange platform (inforo) is also offered via the operating agency, although its use is still limited. The results of the evaluation of the platform suggest that the provision of practical projects and exchange of knowledge alone is not sufficient to support policy makers and practitioners who want to promote health in the community/setting. There is a need for advice on needs assessment, selection and appropriate implementation of health promotion measures. A comprehensive approach currently being tested in the field of activity promotion for older people is the provision of a web-based “toolbox” comprising the following tools: assessment instruments for analysing the need for health promotion measures, a user-friendly intervention/project database and broader evidence synthesis documents, as well as information on project management (organisational, legal, financial). Following the example of other best practice portals, a ranking methodology was developed to make the level of effectiveness of interventions visible and the evaluation requirements transparent. Evidence synthesis documents provide an entry point to learn more generally what works in a particular area of health promotion. In order to make the “toolbox” accessible to policy-makers and practitioners, information from previous studies was used in the development with regard to content and graphical presentation. BZgA is currently working on integrating evidence into the good practice portal. The evaluation of the toolbox in a small area of health promotion will provide initial insights into the inclusion of evidence and its added value. This presentation will conclude with a discussion of possibilities for improvement, challenges and limitations of this approach.

Structured Reporting in Musculoskeletal Radiology

2021 ◽  
Vol 25 (05) ◽  
pp. 641-645
Author(s):  
Ajay Kohli ◽  
Samantha Castillo ◽  
Uma Thakur ◽  
Avneesh Chhabra
Keyword(s):  
Manufacturing Industry ◽  
Service Industry ◽  
Quality Standards ◽  
Structured Reporting ◽  
Learning Approaches ◽  
Musculoskeletal Radiology ◽  
Future Directions ◽  
Future Data ◽  
Service Departments ◽  
And Training

AbstractMusculoskeletal (MSK) radiologists are predominantly consultants in the service departments of health care. Unlike the manufacturing industry, quality controls are difficult to institute in a service industry and more variability is expected. Structured reporting is a unique way to institute quality standards, and by using the checklist approach with uniform terminology, it can lead to more homogeneity and consistency of reporting, concise lexicon use within and across practices, minimization of errors, enhancement of divisional and departmental branding, improvement of interdisciplinary communications, and future data mining. We share our experience from more than a decade of structured reporting in the domain of MSK radiology, our practice standards, and how reporting has evolved in our MSK practice. Further discussions include future directions aided by machine learning approaches with augmented reality and the possibility of virtual fellowship and training using consistent lexicons and structured reporting.

Ready for take‐off: realising the potential of the education and training consortia

1998 ◽  
Vol 24 (5) ◽  
pp. 188-191 ◽  
Author(s):  
John Edmonstone
Keyword(s):  
Resource Allocation ◽  
Good Practice ◽  
Workforce Planning ◽  
Education And Training ◽  
Planning System ◽  
Top Down ◽  
Allocation System ◽  
Developing System ◽  
Resource Allocation System ◽  
And Training

Education consortia are now over 18 months old and can be seen as a “hybrid” between a top‐down resource allocation system and a bottom‐up workforce planning system. The strengths and weaknesses of the developing system are identified, as is emerging good practice in consortia operations. A model for consortia working which emphasises strategic working is proposed.

scholarly journals THE EVALUATION OF DISTANCE LEARNING IN PANDEMIC ERA: CASE STUDY OF FINANCIAL EDUCATION AND TRAINING AGENCY OF MAKASSAR

2020 ◽  
Vol 4 (6) ◽  
Author(s):  
Azwar Iskandar ◽  
Achmat Subekan
Keyword(s):  
Evaluation Model ◽  
Financial Education ◽  
Learning Gain ◽  
Training Performance ◽  
Implementation Evaluation ◽  
Training Materials ◽  
Effectiveness Of Training ◽  
Knowledge And Attitude ◽  
And Training

The objectives of this research are to: (i) evaluate the trainees’s satisfaction on trainers and training performance; (ii) evaluate learning gain or improvement of trainees’s skills, knowledge, and attitude after training; and (iii) know the significant obstacles that can reduce the effectiveness of training. Using the Kirkpatrick Evaluation Model through questionnaire, interview, and descriptive statistics method, this research reveals that: (i) the overall aspect of the implementation evaluation was assessed by participants in the good category although it could not meet the level of expectations of participants that could be seen from the ratio of the average total perception to reality below 100%. On the other hand, the trainers aspect has been able to meet the expectations of participants where the overall level of trainers performance has been assessed by participants and entered into the category of very good; (ii) the results of the evaluation analysis at Level 2 (learning gain) show that most participants graduate with good predicate and get an up/up score so that it can be said that participants have gained additional knowledge after attending the training; (iii) although in general the evaluation results showed good results, there are still some obstacles faced by participants in attending the training. In terms of organizing, participants generally complained about inadequate internet quality in some areas. Meanwhile, in the trainers aspect, participants generally give feedback that teachers can multiply case studies and raise the latest issues in the confectionery of problems related to training materials.

A Strategic Overview and Vision of Simulation-Based Education in Healthcare in England

2020 ◽  
pp. 1-36
Author(s):  
Richard Price ◽  
Sukie Shinn
Keyword(s):  
Professional Development ◽  
Good Practice ◽  
Continuing Professional Development ◽  
High Quality ◽  
Comprehensive Review ◽  
The United Kingdom ◽  
Healthcare Workforce ◽  
Simulation Based ◽  
And Training ◽  
Quality Provision

Simulation-based education (SBE) is an important modality for training a competent and safe healthcare workforce. It is also an important component of core training and continuing professional development for healthcare workers in the National Health Service (NHS) of the United Kingdom. A comprehensive review of SBE provision, led by NHS Health Education England (HEE), discovered many areas of good practice, but also identified inequalities in the access to and delivery of simulation. A framework was developed to help improve the quality, provision, and access to SBE. Case studies are provided in this chapter showcasing the different types of simulation which contributed to the good practice, how they are used in healthcare education, and how they link to the SBE framework. The chapter sets out some of the current challenges with equitable and high-quality provision, detailing plans to further enhance the education and training of the healthcare workforce through SBE through the delivery of a framework, strategic overview, and vision to support these plans.

The Availability of Educational and Training Materials on Men's Reproductive Health

1989 ◽  
Vol 21 (3) ◽  
pp. 120 ◽  
Author(s):  
Katherine A. Forrest ◽  
Janice M. Swanson ◽  
Douglas E. Beckstein
Keyword(s):  
Reproductive Health ◽  
Training Materials ◽  
And Training

scholarly journals Rehabilitating prisoners: the place of basic life skills programmes

2018 ◽  
Vol 17 (1) ◽  
pp. 1-10 ◽  
Author(s):  
Michelle Jolley
Keyword(s):  
Life Skills ◽  
Good Practice ◽  
Structured Interviews ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Multi Method Approach ◽  
Basic Life Skills ◽  
Skills Education ◽  
Life Skills Education ◽  
And Training ◽  
Insight Into

Purpose Tackling high reoffending rates in England and Wales is of significant political interest, with education and training being viewed as an important mechanism to achieve change. The purpose of this paper is to present the findings of a small empirical study examining a life skills programme delivered in a Category C prison in the West Midlands. Design/methodology/approach The study used a multi-method approach incorporating observations of two modules, four focus groups with prisoners enrolled on the programme, questionnaires with programme completers, and semi-structured interviews with staff. Findings The findings indicate that life skills are an important component in rehabilitation. More specifically, developing the necessary tools to assist prisoners in everyday life, such as recognition, interpretation, reflection, response, and planning is fundamental to rehabilitation. Research limitations/implications A limitation of this study was that only prisoners currently at this Category C prison were included. This could be complemented by the inclusion of more participants who had completed the programme; however, access and data protection considerations limited the study to one location. Practical implications The key message of this study is that without addressing basic life skills, education and vocational rehabilitation is severely limited. Social implications To reduce reoffending rates, it is important to conceive rehabilitation in broader terms, not simply in relation to education and vocational training. Originality/value This paper offers insight into an unreported area of good practice in prison rehabilitation provision.

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