A Rapid Evidence Support System Assessment (RESSA) of health policymaking in Ireland - A Protocol.

Background: Evidence-informed policymaking promotes the use of the best available evidence in a systematic and transparent manner to guide policy decisions. It aims to ensure that policies are grounded in credible and relevant evidence while also considering factors such as feasibility, sustainability, equity, and stakeholder input. The Global Evidence Commission has emphasised the necessity for stronger national evidence infrastructures and recommended that governments evaluate their evidence-support systems, focusing on the demand for evidence from policymakers, the supply of timely and relevant evidence, and the coordination between the two.

Patient perceptions of outcomes used to evaluate in-hospital handover interventions: a rapid review of qualitative data.

Objectives: High quality handover is critical for patient safety and care continuity. Existing practice is based on a weak evidence base in which the patient voice is poorly captured. The aim of this study was to identify outcomes of importance to patients, families and carers regarding interventions to improve in-hospital handover between healthcare practitioners.

Developing critical thinking and decision-making skills for cancer information: the Informed Health Choice-Cancer online learning resource.

Purpose: People impacted by cancer face increasing challenges in navigating a landscape of abundant health information and misinformation. This study outlines the development and pilot testing of the Informed Health Choices-Cancer (IHC-C) learning resource, designed to provide users the skills and knowledge necessary to think critically about the reliability of health claims and make well-informed choices. This study outlines the development and pilot testing of this learning resource.

Prioritising methodological research questions for scoping reviews, mapping reviews and evidence and gap maps for health research: a protocol for PROSPECT Delphi study.

Introduction: Scoping reviews, mapping reviews and evidence and gap maps (collectively known as 'big picture reviews') in health continue to gain popularity within the evidence ecosystem. These big-picture reviews are beneficial for policy-makers, guideline developers and researchers within the field of health for understanding the available evidence, characteristics, concepts and research gaps, which are often needed to support the development of policies, guidelines and practice. However, these reviews often face criticism related to poor and inconsistent methodological conduct and reporting.

Lessons learned from building the kid's trial with an online children's and parents' research advisory group: a descriptive, qualitative study.

Health research increasingly incorporates public and patient involvement (PPI) to enhance trial inclusivity and relevance, and it is often mandated by funding and regulatory bodies. PPI boosts public engagement with trials and aligns trial objectives more closely with the priorities of the groups they aim to benefit. The Kid's Trial, an online randomised trial co-created with children, aims to help them better understand what randomised trials are, why they matter, and improve their critical thinking skills.

Cost effectiveness of early metformin in addition to usual care in the reduction of gestational diabetes mellitus effects (EMERGE)-A randomised placebo-controlled clinical trial.

Aims: To investigate the cost-effectiveness of early initiation of metformin and usual care for gestational diabetes mellitus (GDM).

Methods: Economic evaluation from a healthcare perspective, based on the EMERGE randomised controlled trial. In total, 535 women with GDM were randomised to placebo in addition to usual care or metformin in addition to usual care.

Synthesizing Public Health Preparedness Mechanisms for High-Impact Infectious Disease Threats: A Jurisdictional Scan.

Aim: High-impact infectious diseases pose major global health challenges, underscoring the urgent need for robust public health preparedness. Despite efforts to improve global health security, recent pandemics have revealed significant weaknesses in health systems' preparedness and response capabilities.

Methods: We reviewed and synthesized key strategies and lessons from existing public health preparedness plans for high-impact infectious diseases.

Proposed Core Outcomes After Neonatal Sepsis: A Consensus Statement.

Importance: Sepsis is one of the leading causes of neonatal mortality. There is heterogeneity in the outcomes measured and reported in studies of neonatal sepsis. To address this challenge, a core outcome set (COS) for research on neonatal sepsis was needed.

Effectiveness of SARS-CoV-2 testing strategies.

This is a protocol for a Cochrane Review (intervention). The objectives are as follows: To assess the effectiveness of different SARS-CoV-2 testing strategies in reducing COVID-19 cases, hospitalisations, and deaths among suspected cases and asymptomatic individuals.

A meta-core outcome set for stillbirth prevention and bereavement care following stillbirth in LMIC.

Study Objective: Stillbirth is burdensome in low-income and middle-income countries (LMICs), especially in sub-Saharan Africa and South Asia. Currently, there are two core outcome sets (COS) for stillbirth (prevention and bereavement care), but these were developed with limited reflection of the needs of parents in an LMIC setting. To address this gap, the objective of this study was to establish consensus on the most important outcomes for stillbirth prevention and bereavement care following stillbirth in sub-Saharan Africa and South Asia.

Risk-based screening for the evaluation of atrial fibrillation in general practice (R-BEAT): a randomized cross-over trial.

Background: The optimal approach to the diagnosis of atrial fibrillation in primary care is unclear.

Aim: To determine if external loop recorder (ELR) screening improves atrial fibrillation detection in community-dwelling adults with a CHA2DS2-VASc score of greater than two.

Design: Randomized cross-over clinical trial.

Digital Foetal Scalp Stimulation Versus Foetal Blood Sampling to Assess Foetal Well-Being in Labour: A Multicentre Randomised Controlled Trial.

Objective: To establish whether digital foetal scalp stimulation (dFSS) performs better than foetal blood sampling (FBS) in terms of reducing the rate of caesarean section (CS) in labour, without adversely affecting perinatal outcomes.

Design: A multicentre parallel-group randomised controlled trial.

Setting: Maternity centres in Ireland.

Immunogenicity and safety of the 15-valent pneumococcal conjugate vaccine, a systematic review and meta-analysis.

Pneumococcal infections are a serious health issue associated with increased morbidity and mortality. This systematic review evaluated the efficacy, effectiveness, immunogenicity, and safety of the pneumococcal conjugate vaccine (PCV)15 compared to other pneumococcal vaccines or no vaccination in children and adults. We identified 20 randomized controlled trials (RCTs).

Factors that influence recruitment to COVID-19 vaccine trials: a qualitative evidence synthesis.

Background: The COVID-19 pandemic marked a unique period characterised by an extraordinary global virus spread. The collective effort to halt the transmission of the virus led to various public health initiatives, including a variety of COVID-19 vaccine trials. Many of these trials used adaptive methods to address the pandemic's challenges, such as the need for rapid recruitment.

HIV, the gut microbiome and clinical outcomes, a systematic review.

Background: Effective antiretroviral therapy (ART) has improved the life expectancy of people with HIV (PWH). However, this population is now experiencing accelerated age-related comorbidities, contributed to by chronic immune activation and inflammation, with dysbiosis of the gut microbiome also implicated.

Method: We conducted a systematic literature search of PubMed, Embase, Scopus, Cochrane reviews and international conference abstracts for articles that examined for the following non-communicable diseases (NCDs); cardiovascular disease, cancer, frailty, metabolic, bone, renal and neurocognitive disease, in PWH aged >18 years.

Health misinformation: protocol for a hybrid concept analysis and development.

Background: Misinformation represents a serious and growing concern for public health and healthcare health; and has attracted much interest from researchers, media, and the public over recent years. Despite increased concern about the impacts of misinformation on health and wellbeing, however, the concept of health misinformation remains underdeveloped. In particular, there is a need to clarify how certain types of health information come to be designated as "misinformation," what characteristics are associated with this classification, and how the concept of misinformation is applied in health contexts.

How should trial teams make decisions about the proportions and diversity of the ethnic groups in their trial?

Background: The benefits of randomised trials are not shared equally, and people from ethnic minority groups are a key constituency under-served by clinical research and clinical care. The STRIDE project aimed to give trialists practical information about how to decide which ethnic groups should be in their trials, and at what proportion.

Methods: We considered trials in six clinical areas: cancer, cardiovascular, diabetes, maternal health, mental health, and smoking cessation.

The Comprehensive Resilience-building psychosocial Intervention (CREST) for people with dementia in the community: a feasibility and acceptability study.

Background: A dementia diagnosis can lead to a decline in cognitive, social, and physical health, but people with dementia can live meaningful lives and participate actively in society with psychosocial support. This single-arm, non-randomised feasibility study explored the feasibility and acceptability of a Comprehensive REsilience-building psychoSocial intervenTion (CREST) for people with dementia, their caregivers, General Practitioners (GPs), and the public.

Methods: Nine people with dementia and their primary caregivers living in the community (n = 9 dyads) completed the CREST intervention which had three components (cognitive stimulation therapy [CST], physical exercise, and dementia education).

Key concepts in rapid reviews: an overview.

Background And Objective: Rapid reviews have gained popularity as a pragmatic approach to synthesize evidence in a timely manner to inform decision-making in healthcare. This article provides an overview of the key concepts and methodological considerations in conducting rapid reviews, drawing from a series of recently published guidance papers by the Cochrane Rapid Reviews Methods Group.

Study Design And Setting: We discuss the definition, characteristics, and potential applications of rapid reviews and the trade-offs between speed and rigor.

Metformin and small for gestational age babies: findings of a randomised placebo-controlled clinical trial of metformin in gestational diabetes (EMERGE).

Aims/hypothesis: Gestational diabetes mellitus (GDM) is associated with adverse perinatal outcomes because of suboptimal glucose management and glucose control and excessive weight gain. Metformin can offset these factors but is associated with small for gestational age (SGA) infants. We sought to identify risk factors for SGA infants, including the effect of metformin exposure on SGA status.