Evidence Based Health Care (Systematic Reviews)

This course is designed for health care professionals and researchers seeking to consolidate their understanding and ability in contextualising, carrying out, and applying systematic reviews appropriately in health care settings.

Core modules will introduce the students to the principles of evidence-based health care, as well as the core skills and methods needed for research design and conduct. Further modules will provide students with specific skills in conducting basic systematic reviews, meta-analysis and broader forms of evidence synthesis, such as realist reviews, reviews of clinical study reports and diagnostic accuracy reviews.

Teaching is tailored to those with a minimal prior knowledge of systematic reviews and delivered by an experienced team of tutors from the University of Oxford, who actively work to advance the practice of evidence-based health care through the conduct and dissemination of systematic reviews.

The course aims to provide health-care professionals with a structured training in designing, conducting, and interpreting high-quality systematic reviews in health care.

The course also aims:

• to introduce the basic concepts and skills of evidence-based health care, including how to formulate a clinical research question, search for evidence, critically appraise evidence for sources of bias, and apply evidence to health care settings
• to describe in detail different types of research methods and identify the strengths and weaknesses of different study designs.

Students on the course will:

• learn how to design a systematic review research protocol
• gain a more detailed understanding of the process involved in conducting a systematic review
• develop the skills to conduct, report and update a systematic review
• gain a familiarity with basic and advanced techniques for the analysis of quantitative systematic review data: meta-analysis, meta-regression, network meta-analysis, diagnostic meta-analysis, individual patient data meta-analysis
• gain an understanding of and reasons for more complex systematic reviews in health care, such as realist reviews, reviews of clinical study reports, prognostic reviews, and meta-synthesis
• explore new paradigms in systematic reviews and evidence synthesis
• gain sufficient training to conduct systematic reviews independently.

Compared with the MSc in Evidence-Based Health Care, this degree will suit those with a particular interest in and requirement for training in the conduct of systematic reviews relevant to evidence-based health care.

This is a joint course offered between the Nuffield Department of Primary Care Health Sciences and the Department for Continuing Education. The programme works in collaboration with the renowned Centre for Evidence-Based Medicine in Oxford.

This course has teachers and contributors who are internationally recognised leaders in the field of evidence-based practice and systematic reviews. The flexible structure of the course has been devised to fit with the structure of specialist training and to accommodate student choice.

Assessment for each module will be based on a written assignment of not more than 4,000 words. The dissertation will be on a topic chosen in consultation with your supervisor and the course director and should not normally exceed 15,000 words.

The allocation of graduate supervision for this course is the responsibility of the Nuffield Department of Primary Care Health Sciences and/or the Department for Continuing Education and it is not always possible to accommodate the preferences of incoming graduate students to work with a particular member of staff. Under exceptional circumstances a supervisor may be found outside the Nuffield Department of Primary Care Health Sciences and/or the Department for Continuing Education.

Most part-time students starting this course are already in full-time employment. The MSc offers health care professionals opportunities to enhance their working lives by:

• updating and improving their clinical practice
• facilitating effective and timely decision making in health care
• identifying and applying research critically to improve their own and others’ practice
• disseminating and translating high quality evidence for patient and public benefit
• opening up new career opportunities.

Past students have also gone on to study for the part-time DPhil in Evidence-Based Health Care and all graduates are invited to be part of an international alumni network where success is shared and new initiatives are supported.

Changes to this course and your supervision

The University will seek to deliver this course in accordance with the description set out in this course page. However, there may be situations in which it is desirable or necessary for the University to make changes in course provision, either before or after registration. In certain circumstances, for example due to visa difficulties or because the health needs of students cannot be met, it may be necessary to make adjustments to course requirements for international study.

Where possible your academic supervisor will not change for the duration of your course. However, it may be necessary to assign a new academic supervisor during the course of study or before registration for reasons which might include sabbatical leave, parental leave or change in employment.

For further information, please see our page on changes to courses.

Other courses you may wish to consider

If you're thinking about applying for this course, you may also wish to consider the courses listed below. These courses may have been suggested due to their similarity with this course, or because they are offered by the same department or faculty.

Courses suggested by the lead department

Evidence-Based Health Care MSc
Evidence-Based Health Care (Medical Statistics) MSc
Evidence-Based Health Care DPhil
Primary Health Care DPhil
Health Research PGDip
Health Research PGCert
Surgical Science and Practice MSc
Experimental Therapeutics MSc
Paediatric Infectious Diseases MSc
Paediatric Infectious Diseases PGDip

All graduate courses in this area offered by the Department for Continuing Education

Cognitive Behavioural Studies PGCert

Cognitive Behavioural Therapy MSc

Cognitive Behavioural Therapy PGDip

Cognitive Behavioural Therapy PGCert

Cognitive Behavioural Therapy DPhil

Continuing Education DPhil

Enhanced Cognitive Behavioural Therapy PGCert

Evidence Based Health Care (Medical Statistics) MSc

Evidence Based Health Care (Systematic Reviews) MSc

Evidence-Based Health Care DPhil

Evidence-Based Health Care MSc

Experimental and Translational Therapeutics MSc

Health Research PGDip

Health Research PGCert

Mindfulness Based Cognitive Therapy MSt

Paediatric Infectious Diseases MSc

Paediatric Infectious Diseases PGDip

Patient Safety PGCert

Psychodynamic Counselling PGCert

Psychodynamic Practice MSt

Psychodynamic Practice PGDip

Qualitative Health Research Methods PGCert

Surgical Science and Practice MSc

Teaching Evidence-Based Health Care PGCert

Translational Health Sciences MSc

All graduate courses offered by the Nuffield Department of Primary Care Health Sciences

Evidence Based Health Care (Medical Statistics) MSc

Evidence Based Health Care (Systematic Reviews) MSc

Evidence-Based Health Care DPhil

Evidence-Based Health Care MSc

Health Research PGDip

Health Research PGCert

Primary Health Care DPhil

Qualitative Health Research Methods PGCert

Teaching Evidence-Based Health Care PGCert

Translational Health Sciences MSc

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Entry requirements