Rapid Evidence Service
Our Rapid Evidence Service (RES) draws on internationally accepted review methodology to produce rapid reviews on priority public health topics. We are committed to equity, diversity and inclusivity in our reviews.
We established our RES in 2020, when we recognized the need for synthesized evidence to support COVID-19 public health decision-making, and expanded our focus in 2021. We have answered questions from Health Canada, the National Advisory Committee on Immunization, the Public Health Agency of Canada, and other organizations at international, federal, provincial, territorial and local levels.
Read more about our approach here!
<br>
Does your organization have a priority public health question?
Contract our RES team to:
- Define a question(s) to address your local practice issue;
- Identify the type of review needed to answer your question(s);
- Develop a comprehensive, systematic search strategy;
- Critically appraise and synthesize available evidence; and
- Present the findings in an actionable report.
<br>
Examples of completed syntheses:
- What is known about the role of public health in working with shelters serving people experiencing homelessness?
- What is known about changes to public health surveillance programs, systems and strategies at the population level for governments globally due to the COVID-19 pandemic?
- What is known about the application of upstream and midstream health promotion approaches in the context of H1N1, COVID-19, and mpox pandemic preparedness and response?
- What is the evidence for the effectiveness of public health interventions, and their potential unintended consequences, to reduce the direct and indirect health impacts of exposure to wildfires, including wildfire smoke and combined heat-wildfire smoke events?
- What are best practices for risk communication and strategies to mitigate risk behaviours?
- What is known about strategies to implement evidence-informed practice at an organizational level?
- What are effective policy and program initiatives to increase physical activity and/or reduce sedentary time for cancer prevention?
- What are effective policy and program initiatives to increase healthy eating and/or decrease unhealthy eating for cancer prevention?
- What national or population-level interventions or policies that address the social determinants of mental health have an effect on mental health and well-being?
- What is the specific role of daycares and schools in COVID-19 transmission?
- What is the effectiveness of physical distancing in reducing transmission of COVID-19 and other respiratory illnesses (e.g., influenza, respiratory syncytial virus (RSV)) in non-healthcare community-based settings?
- What is the effectiveness of measures to reduce contacts in reducing transmission of COVID-19 and other respiratory illnesses (e.g., influenza, respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) in non-healthcare community-based settings?
Are you interested in learning how to conduct your own rapid reviews?
Our online tools, supports and training opportunities can help you build competence and confidence in synthesizing evidence!
<style>#recently-completed-reviews h5{
font-weight: 600;
text-align: left;
font-size: 18px;
margin-bottom: 25px;}
#recently-completed-reviews a:link {text-decoration: underline}
</style>
font-weight: 600;
text-align: left;
font-size: 18px;
margin-bottom: 25px;}
#recently-completed-reviews a:link {text-decoration: underline}
</style>
Recently Completed Reviews
- Rapid Review Update 1: What effect does using indoor air filtration or air cleaning during combustion-derived air pollution episodes have on human health endpoints?
- Rapid Review: What effect does public health messaging about wildfire smoke have on behaviours and human health outcomes?
- Rapid Review: What is the effectiveness of school-based interventions for gender- and sexual orientation-based violence against 2SLGBTQI+ individuals?
<br>
All completed rapid reviews are uploaded to Synthesis Swap, our repository for public health evidence syntheses.
<div class="text-center"><br>Look for the <img width="125px" src="/images/Sl_eFL3hVrNUfoDUNbPZNDLQ6GY=/6/original/" alt='NCCMT Review Tag'> tag!</div>
<style> a:link {text-decoration: underline} </style>
Determine which type of synthesis
is best for your purposes!
is best for your purposes!
Contact us at nccmt@mcmaster.ca for partnership and pricing information.