Register to Promote Transparency and Prevent Duplication
A major global initiative to establish an
international register that will improve the transparency of
health research was launched today by Health Minister Lord Howe.
The register is called PROSPERO, the first online facility to
register systematic reviews for research about health and social
care from all around the world. The register is completely free
and open to the public. It was started by the National Institute
for Health Research (NIHR) Centre for Reviews and Dissemination
(CRD) which is funded by the Department of Health.
The register is designed to avoid the duplication of health
research and will act as a guard against selective reporting of research.
Health Minister Lord Howe said:
“The National Institute for Health Research is committed to
providing the best possible evidence to inform decisions and
choices for health and social care.
“I am therefore delighted that the NIHR is leading the
international research community by making registration a
requirement for all those researchers it commissions to undertake
systematic reviews.”
Professor Dame Sally Davies, Director General of
Research and Development at the Department of Health said:
“We are supporting the development of PROSPERO because we think
it’s important to establish mechanisms that guarantee integrity
and maintain quality standards.
“I am also delighted that PROSPERO has been designed so it can be
used internationally to promote best practice around the world.
Duplication of systematic reviews is commonplace and it is
increasingly important that knowledge is shared efficiently to
maximise the use of available research resources worldwide.”
Professor Lesley Stewart, Director of the Centre
for Reviews and Dissemination, said:
“A prospective register of systematic reviews submitted at the
protocol stage will increase transparency and guard against
selective reporting; making it obvious if the research that is
published differs from what was planned at the outset.
“We have been delighted by the enthusiastic international
response to the development of PROSPERO, having elicited support
for registration from CIHR, INAHTA, NICE, the Cochrane and
Campbell Collaborations and the Joanna Briggs initiative. This is
truly an international collaborative effort.”
Notes to Editors
1. Systematic reviews provide the best quality evidence to
support decision making in health and social care for policy and
practice. Systematic reviews adhere to a strict scientific design
based on explicit, pre-specified and reproducible methods. When
carried out well, they provide reliable estimates about the
effects of interventions.
2. PROSPERO is a prospective register of systematic reviews of
health and social care interventions produced and maintained by
the Centre for Reviews and Dissemination. www.crd.york.ac.uk/prospero
3. The Centre for Reviews and Dissemination is part of the
National Institute for Health Research and a department of the
University of York. The Centre produces and disseminates
systematic reviews and associated economic analyses that evaluate
the effects of health and social care interventions, and the
delivery and organisation of health care. www.york.ac.uk/inst/crd.
Further information can be obtained from Paul Wilson, Tel: 01904
321040 or Email: paul.wilson@york.ac.uk
4. The National Institute for Health Research provides the
framework through which the research staff and research
infrastructure of the NHS in England is positioned, maintained and
managed as a national research facility. The NIHR provides the NHS
with the support and infrastructure it needs to conduct
first-class research funded by the Government and its partners
alongside high-quality patient care, education and training. Its
aim is to support outstanding individuals (both leaders and
collaborators), working in world class facilities (both NHS and
university), conducting leading edge research focused on the needs
of patients. www.nihr.ac.uk
5. For media enquiries only, please contact the Department of
Health news desk on 020 7210 5221.
Contacts:
Department of Health
Phone: 020 7210 5221
NDS.DH@coi.gsi.gov.uk