Feedback Management Advisory Group Report

to the Cochrane Collaboration Steering Group

for discussion at its meeting in October 2005

  1. How many meetings, and of what type (e.g. face-to-face, by teleconference), has your Advisory Group had since April 2005? 

 

After our successful teleconference in January, 2005, we have communicated primarily by email. Since we put into operation the new feedback system over this period of time, and it has been more widely used, we have responded to individual emails about its implementation. The emails have been to individual members of the FMAG, feedback editors, and interested others, one-by-one, as questions have emerged with the use of the new feedback system.

Is this what you expected when you set your budget for the year?

 

We had expected to hold another teleconference during this time, but have communicated by email instead. We will plan one to two teleconferences over the following six months.

 

  1. Supply an up-to-date list of the members of your Advisory Group.

 

Lisa Bero (Steering Group), Lelia Duley, Cindy Farquhar, Suzanne Fletcher, Sarah Garner, Sonja Henderson, David Henderson-Smart, Bill Hersh, Andrew Herxheimer, Gillian Leng, John McDonald, David Moher, Maryann Napoli, Zulma Ortiz, Deborah Pentesco-Gilbert, Sherri Sheinfeld Gorin (Convenor), Ida Sim, Silvana Simi, Liz Waters (Steering Group).

 

  1. Summarise any significant actions taken by your Advisory Group since your last report, and significant actions planned between now and the next meeting of the CCSG in Melbourne in October 2005.

 

Over the past six months, we have worked to fully implement the new feedback system, to address any issues with its operation, to further disseminate it, to increase its use, and to expand its value to Cochrane authors. In addition, our advisory group has worked to expand our list of feedback editors, so have added Ms. Zulma Ortiz, whose enthusiasm enriches the Cochrane Musculoskeletal Group’s efforts. We are now represented on the QAG, so as to increase our involvement in Cochrane-related training efforts and to advise the QAG’s work. Prior to the Melbourne conference, we expect to update the FMAG feedback editor’s training manual, as described in our yearly aims.

 

  1. Does your Advisory Group have any questions that you would like the Steering Group to answer?  If so, please list them.

 

We do not have any questions of the Steering Group at this time.

 

  1. Does your Advisory Group wish to raise any problems, and recommended solutions, which you would like the Steering Group to discuss?  If so, please list them.

 

We do not have any problems, or recommended solutions for the Steering Group to discuss at this time. We do, however, wish to strongly recommend that the Steering Group consider additional support for the IMS, as it has been quite helpful in the renewed growth of the feedback function. 

  1. Do you foresee any problems in keeping within the budget you submitted for the current financial year (April 2005 to March 2006)?  This is to help in the Steering Group’s planning of expenditure over that time period.

We do not anticipate requesting any additional monies over this period of time, but would greatly appreciate the Steering Group’s leaving the existing monies in our budget so that we might conduct an additional set of teleconferences to meet our Group’s aims.

 

Sherri Sheinfeld Gorin

Convenor, FMAG

30 September 2005