Parts of this manual were built on content created by Susan J. Snelling for the Public
Health Research, Education and Development (PHRED) program and presented at the
Ontario): Tools, Strategies and Stories of Using Evidence in Rural and Remote Health
Services Delivery and Policy Development in May of 2007.
Wellington 惠灵顿 assignment 代写
The OPHLA would like to thank Susan J. Snelling and PHRED for allowing this content
to be adapted for use in the OPHLA’s manual.
Purpose of this Guide
Wellington 惠灵顿 assignment 代写
The purpose of this guide is to provide a brief overview of the critical appraisal process.
Assessing the validity of research studies can be a complex and time-consuming undertaking. If
you are conducting a lengthy evaluation, you may wish to consult more exhaustive critical
appraisal resources (a list of suggested further reading has been appended to this guide).
Participation in the Skills Enhancement for Public Health program offered by the Public Health
Agency of Canada is recommended prior to attempting in-depth critical appraisal.
What is Critical Appraisal?
“Critical appraisal is the process of systematically examining research evidence to assess its
validity, results, and relevance before using it to inform a decision”
(Hill and Spittlehouse, 2001, p.1).
Critical appraisal is an essential step in the process of putting research into practice. Asking
questions about an article’s research methodology, scrutinizing its data collection and analysis
methods, and evaluating how its findings are presented will help you to determine whether that
article’s conclusions should influence practical decision-making.
Why Critically Appraise Research Evidence?
It is crucial to critically evaluate research evidence in order to facilitate evidence-based practice,
which is the use of the best evidence available to guide decision making and program design.
The term “best evidence” emphasizes the fact that it is the quality and not the quantity of
evidence that is of primary significance. Critical appraisal allows you to distinguish the best
available evidence from within a large body of research.
Using a best-evidence approach allows you to:
• Retrieve reliable, up-to-date information about which interventions do and do not work
for a particular public health topic;
• Control the amount of literature that you will need to analyze; and
• Feel confident that public health decision making is based on the “best of the best”
information available on a particular topic.
