Systematic Reviews

The Dana Health Sciences Library provides systematic and scoping review support to affiliates of Larner College of Medicine, College of Nursing & Health Sciences, and the University of Vermont Medical Center. It is recommended that you consult with a librarian at the outset of your project, when you are planning your review. We offer two support models for reviews, each with different levels of effort and expectation.

Ready to request systematic or scoping review support from Dana? Complete and submit a request now.

Consultation model: With this model, a librarian will discuss your project with you, review any terms you have or show you how to develop a terms list, advise on database selection, and provide an overview of the review process. This discussion typically occurs in a one-hour meeting, in person or via Zoom. Review teams then run their own searches and continue the process with minimal input from the librarian.

Collaboration model: With this model, librarians collaborate with you to:

• Formulate your research question.
• Investigate whether there is already a published systematic or scoping review on your topic or whether there is one currently under development.
• Plan the search and write the search methods for your review protocol.
• Determine which sources to search and develop sensitive search strategies for each source.
• Identify appropriate search filters and execute the searches.
• Advise on the choice of screening platforms.
• De-duplicate search results with EndNote
• Assist with obtaining full-text articles.
• Identify tools and strategies to capture the data for the PRISMA flow diagram.
• Document the search process for reporting purposes.
• Write the search methods of the review.
• Review the manuscript prior to submission.

Authorship

Librarians collaborating on systematic and scoping reviews commonly satisfy the criteria for authorship set forth by ICMJE. Co-authorship is expected when a librarian serves as collaborator rather than a consultant. If your project is in support of a grant proposal, plan to discuss the appropriate allocation of effort and include the librarian as a co-investigator.

In addition, we also strongly encourage that the post peer-review copy of the manuscript be submitted to UVM ScholarWorks unless prohibited by the journal publisher. A librarian can complete this task for the team. 

Meta-analysis assistance

Dana Library does not offer assistance with meta-analysis or meta-analytic methods. Contact the UVM Biomedical Statistics Research Core for inquiries regarding meta-analysis.