The work supported by the Evidence Synthesis Infrastructure Collaborative aims to provide real-time aggregation of scientific data, support open science practices, and offer the most up-to-date evidence to policymakers, clinicians, and decision-makers. This initiative will reduce the time and cost required to produce evidence syntheses, making them more accessible to researchers globally, especially in underfunded fields.
Understanding the state of scientific evidence is crucial for making informed decisions. However, individual studies only provide a partial view of the overall picture. Systematic reviews and meta-analyses are powerful tools that evaluate a wide range of studies collectively. Unfortunately, these processes are often slow, which can be problematic in rapidly evolving situations such as infectious disease outbreaks.
For instance, during the Zika virus outbreak in South America, a systematic review initiated in May 2016 synthesized over 700 papers on the topic. However, by the time the review was completed in January 2017, an additional 1,400 papers had been published, rendering the review outdated upon release. To address this issue, the concept of living evidence synthesis has emerged, where new research is continuously integrated with existing data as soon as it becomes available.
While there are ongoing living evidence synthesis programs like GALENOS within Wellcome and the Cochrane Collaboration outside Wellcome, these initiatives lack coordination and sufficient funding. The new project supported by Wellcome aims to unite existing programs and create a framework that can be utilized by any organization interested in developing a living evidence synthesis platform.
Living evidence synthesis is a labor-intensive process that involves extracting relevant data from scientific papers and converting them into actionable information for decision-makers. By establishing common data infrastructure and leveraging AI technology, the project intends to streamline and expedite the evidence synthesis process, making it more cost-effective and accessible to a wider range of institutions and individuals, particularly those in under-resourced regions.
The initiative also aims to democratize access to evidence synthesis tools across various disciplines beyond health, such as education, agriculture, energy, and urban planning. By providing a common platform for knowledge advancement, Wellcome encourages funders in these fields to invest in living evidence synthesis programs that can benefit from the efficiency and standardization offered by the infrastructure.
The development of a living evidence synthesis infrastructure is expected to revolutionize the scientific community by making robust, constantly updated literature reviews accessible to all researchers. This shift towards democratizing access to evidence synthesis tools will empower decision-makers across sectors to make informed choices based on the latest scientific evidence, ultimately driving policy, clinical decisions, and business strategies forward.