19th Cochrane Colloquium, Auckland, New Zealand
Evidence Aid was represented at the 19th Cochrane Colloquium which was held in Auckland
in September 2012. Claire Allen presented a poster about the first Cochrane Systematic
Review that Evidence Aid had carried out in partnership with others, an oral presentation
about the results of the needs assessment survey, and Mike Ardagh (Professor of
Emergency Medicine at the Canterbury District Health Board in New Zealand) talked about
his use of Evidence Aid resources after the Christchurch earthquake in February 2011.
Electric Fans in Heatwaves – a rapid Cochrane
Review
The first Evidence Aid systematic review, (in
collaboration with the UK’s Health Protection
Agency, Health Canada, the All Ireland
Methodology Hub, and the Chinese University
of Hong Kong) was published in 20121. The
review was carried out to determine if electric
fans have a harmful or protective effect on the
general population during heatwaves. It was
prepared rapidly through Evidence Aid with the
aim to inform the 2012 Heatwave Plan for
England. 4500 potential records were identified
and 120 full text articles were assessed. None
met the criteria for the review. The evidence
identified does not resolve uncertainties
surrounding the health effects of electric fans
during heatwaves; continued research is
needed to address the ongoing confusion. The
review sets out the need for new research, with
the design for a randomized trial in the review.
It was press-released by the publishers of The Cochrane Library, John Wiley and Sons
Limited, on 11 July, and Tweeted and added to the Evidence Aid Facebook page on the
following day. There were many online media hits.
1
Gupta S, Carmichael C, Simpson C, Clarke MJ, Allen C, Gao Y et al. Electric fans for reducing adverse
health impacts in heatwaves. Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews 2012, Issue 7. Art. No.:
CD009888. DOI: 10.1002/14651858.CD009888.pub2 (July 2012).
Evidence Aid is grateful to the members of the editorial team of the Cochrane
Gynaecological Cancer Review Group who oversaw editorial responsibility for the review.
The review was completed over a 9 month period, being published on 11 July 2012. This
speed contrasts with the average two or more years from title registration to review
completion for other Cochrane Reviews. This process showed that rapid reviewing for
Cochrane Reviews is possible with limited resources, and can be used as a model to
promote a rapid turnaround of Cochrane Reviews on issues of major, global importance.
Needs Assessment Survey
Presenting on behalf of Bonnix Kayabu, Claire was allocated a 20 minute oral presentation in
a parallel session to describe the background, aims, methods, results and conclusions to
date of the needs assessment survey. The presentation was well-received and many
questions were asked following it. The overall conclusion is that t he technology, resources,
partnerships and knowledge are all coming into place for Evidence Aid. The time has come to
ensure that those making decisions about services and interventions following natural
disasters have access to the most reliable evidence for those choices.
Mike Ardagh presents about the use of Evidence Aid during the Christchurch earthquake
During the closing session at the Colloquium,
Evidence Aid was lucky enough to receive
feedback on the Special Collection for
Earthquakes through Mike Ardagh who used
Evidence Aid during the medical emergencies
which occurred as a result of the Christchurch
earthquake. He explained what was right and
what was wrong with the Special Collection and
Evidence Aid took note and will adapt.
Mike’s presentation can be viewed at www.evidenceaid.org.