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Clinical Trial Details — Status: Completed

Administrative data

NCT number NCT02813941
Other study ID # MIF1-II
Secondary ID
Status Completed
Phase N/A
First received
Last updated
Start date January 8, 2018
Est. completion date August 21, 2018

Study information

Verified date August 2018
Source McMaster University
Contact n/a
Is FDA regulated No
Health authority
Study type Interventional

Clinical Trial Summary

Background: Summary of Findings (SoF) tables have been developed to present results of systematic reviews in a concise and explicit format. Adopted by many review groups including the Cochrane Collaboration, the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ), and the GRADE Working Group; SoF tables provide succinct, transparent, and easily interpretable judgments about the certainty of evidence and magnitude of effects. Currently, there are three different SoF formats in use. This study aims to compare SoF table formats in terms of understanding, accessibility, satisfaction, and preference with systematic review users.

Methods: The primary objective of this three-arm randomized controlled non-inferiority trial is to investigate whether an alternative GRADE-SoF table, or EPC-SoF table, is noninferior to the current GRADE-SoF table in the understanding of information presented to systematic review users. Researchers, clinical practice guideline developers, policy-makers, end-users, or knowledge transfer will be recruited. Data will be collected electronically at baseline and after randomization. Noninferiority would be declared if the difference in the proportion of participants who understand the information displayed in the alternative SoF table is 10% or less.

Discussion: This study aims to assess the understanding, accessibility, satisfaction, and preference between three SoF tables for displaying summary evidence from health-related outcomes. The results of this study will provide important knowledge to understand what information should be included in SoF tables in systematic reviews.


Description:

Objective: Summary of Findings (SoF) tables present results of systematic reviews in a concise and explicit format. Adopted by many review groups including the Cochrane Collaboration, and the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ). Optimal understanding of SoF table may be influenced by the type of information being conveyed and objectives or preferences of the end user. This study aims to compare three SoF table formats in terms of understanding, accessibility, satisfaction, and preference with systematic review users.

Methods: The primary objective of this three-arm randomized controlled non-inferiority trial is to investigate whether an alternative GRADE-SoF table or EPC-SoF table is noninferior to the current GRADE-SoF table in the understanding of the information presented to systematic review users, particularly for descriptive findings. Researchers, clinical practice guideline developers, policy-makers, or knowledge transfer professionals will be recruited. Data will be collected electronically at baseline and after randomization. Noninferiority would be declared if the difference in the proportion of participants who understand the information displayed in the alternative SoF table is 10% or less.

Ethics and Dissemination: The Hamilton Integrated Research Ethics Board (HiREB) reviewed this protocol. The findings from this study will be disseminated through a publication in a peer-reviewed journal.

Strengths and limitations of this study

- This is a randomized controlled trial that uses a GRADE Summary of Finding (SoF) table evaluated in another randomized controlled trial with a positive accomplishment of understanding the information displayed on it.

- This is the first time that GRADE SoF tables will be evaluated, in terms of understanding descriptive findings with a select part of a SoF table adapted by an EPC center to convey information on multiple comparisons efficiently.

- This will test understanding of presentation of findings from only a single comparison and will not test understanding of a complex body of evidence.


Other known NCT identifiers
  • NCT02732028

Recruitment information / eligibility

Status Completed
Enrollment 178
Est. completion date August 21, 2018
Est. primary completion date June 1, 2018
Accepts healthy volunteers Accepts Healthy Volunteers
Gender All
Age group 18 Years and older
Eligibility Inclusion criteria:

Participants will be eligible if they consider themselves as systematic review users. For the purpose of this trial, systematic review users will be defined as researchers, clinical practice guideline developers, policy-makers, or knowledge transfer professionals. Participants who declare dedicating more than 70% of their time during last year to conducting research (for example, methodologists, epidemiologists, statisticians) will be classified as researchers. Participants who declare having participated in at least one systematic review or clinical practice guideline during the last two years will be classified as clinical practice guideline developers. Knowledge transfer professionals, who declare working in a dynamic and iterative process that includes synthesis, dissemination, exchange and ethically sound application of knowledge to improve the health care system, during last two years, will be classified as knowledge transfer professionals. Finally, participants who declare being responsible for or involved in formulating policies in the last year, especially in politics, will be classified as policy-makers.

Study Design


Related Conditions & MeSH terms


Intervention

Other:
Current GRADE SoF table
The current GRADE SoF table will be the common comparator for the other two SoF tables
Alternative GRADE SoF table
The alternative GRADE SoF table format will be developed from a user-testing survey.
EPC SoF table
For the EPC SoF table, the investigators will use one of their format which was recently published

Locations

Country Name City State
Canada Department of Health Research Methods, Evidence and Impact Hamilton Ontario

Sponsors (3)

Lead Sponsor Collaborator
McMaster University Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ), Grading of Recommendations Assessment, Development and Evaluation working group

Country where clinical trial is conducted

Canada, 

References & Publications (3)

Berkman ND, Lohr KN, Ansari MT, Balk EM, Kane R, McDonagh M, Morton SC, Viswanathan M, Bass EB, Butler M, Gartlehner G, Hartling L, McPheeters M, Morgan LC, Reston J, Sista P, Whitlock E, Chang S. Grading the strength of a body of evidence when assessing — View Citation

Carrasco-Labra A, Brignardello-Petersen R, Santesso N, Neumann I, Mustafa RA, Mbuagbaw L, Etxeandia Ikobaltzeta I, De Stio C, McCullagh LJ, Alonso-Coello P, Meerpohl JJ, Vandvik PO, Brozek JL, Akl EA, Bossuyt P, Churchill R, Glenton C, Rosenbaum S, Tugwel — View Citation

Feltner C, Jones CD, Cené CW, Zheng ZJ, Sueta CA, Coker-Schwimmer EJL, Arvanitis M, Lohr KN, Middleton JC, Jonas DE. Transitional Care Interventions To Prevent Readmissions for People With Heart Failure [Internet]. Rockville (MD): Agency for Healthcare Re — View Citation

Outcome

Type Measure Description Time frame Safety issue
Primary Understanding of information (questionnaire) Investigators will frame multiple-choice questions about key concepts in the table with five response alternatives for each question and only one correct answer. Then, investigators will compare the proportion of correct answers between groups per question 30 minutes
Secondary Accessibility of information (questionnaire) This outcome considers four items: 1) how easy it is to find critical information in the table; 2) how easy it is to understand the information; 3) whether the information is presented in a way that is helpful for decision-making; and 4) the overall accessibility of information. 30 minutes
Secondary Satisfaction (questionnaire) It will be measured using a 7-point Likert scale with 3 anchors: 1= strongly dissatisfied, 4= neither satisfied nor dissatisfied, 7= strongly satisfied, and it will be treated as a continuous outcome. Investigators will compare the means per group. 30 minutes
Secondary Preference (questionnaire) Participants will answer the question: 'Between Table A (the current GRADE SoF table), Table B (the alternative GRADE SoF table) or Table C (EPC SoF table), which table do you prefer?' It will be measured using a rank of three: 1st choice, 2nd choice, and 3rd choice, and it will be treated as an ordinal outcome. 30 minutes

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