Individual Participant Data Meta-Analysis Projects: A practical introduction for healthcare research (Online) University of Birmingham

Overview

This Individual Participant Data Meta-Analysis Projects: A practical introduction for healthcare research (Online) course at University of Birmingham covers the steps involved and will help you decide whether an IPD meta-analysis is likely to be worth the investment. Whilst examples focus on clinical trials, the course will also be relevant for other types of IPD meta-analyses.

By the end of the course, participants will:

• Have a deep understanding of what an IPD meta-analysis is, and the types of research questions it can address.

• Know when and why to conduct an IPD meta-analysis rather than a traditional systematic review and meta-analysis of (published) aggregate data, or a primary study with new data collection.

• Be fully aware of the ethical and governance issues involved in IPD meta-analysis projects.

• Understand the fundamental steps involved in completion of an IPD meta-analysis project, including: identification of relevant studies; selection of IPD and variables for analyses; obtaining IPD; examining data quality and risk of bias; data cleaning and checking; harmonising IPD; and merging data for analyses.

• Know how to calculate the potential power of an IPD meta-analysis to address the research question(s) of interest.

• Understand the basic principles of fundamental approaches to IPD meta-analysis; specifically, differences in 1-stage and 2-stage approaches, why they may differ, and when each should be used.

• Know how to ensure timely dissemination of IPD meta-analyses and adhere to reporting guidelines.

• Know how to critically appraise published IPD meta-analyses.