3.2.2.4 Organizing exploratory meetings

Exploratory meetings may have a number of objectives, for example, to outline the need for systematic reviews, to explain how The Cochrane Collaboration works and what a commitment to The Cochrane Collaboration entails; to assess whether it is feasible and sensible to form a Group, to clarify the scope of a Group, and to formalize any decision to form a Group. Most of the people attending an exploratory meeting may have little or no knowledge or understanding of The Cochrane Collaboration. Someone therefore needs to introduce it, and a demonstration of The Cochrane Library is an effective way of showing people what The Cochrane Collaboration is all about. Exploratory meetings (for examples of an agenda and report of one of these meetings, see sections 3.2.8.1 and 3.2.8.2 respectively) should accomplish the following:

• introduce and make explicit the interests of those attending;

• introduce The Cochrane Collaboration and its working methods;

• review relevant existing work, including any systematic reviews or specialized registers of controlled trials;

• clarify the definition and scope of the health problems to be covered by the Group, and a categorization of these;

• try to avoid possible conflicts and disappointments in the future by ensuring that people who may not really want to become involved are given opportunities to support The Cochrane Collaboration in other ways, or not directly at all;

• explicitly state that authors are expected both to produce and periodically update their reviews within given time periods;

• generate a list of possible authors in the area;

• consider how to avoid unnecessary overlap with other Cochrane Review Groups;

• assess what resources already exist for developing a Cochrane Review Group, and invite each participant at the meeting to indicate what s/he would be willing to contribute;

• make it clear that members of the Group will be responsible for seeking whatever additional resources may be required;

• agree on an agenda and timetable for action.

In some areas it may take several years to assemble a group of people with similar interests and the ability and resources (particularly the time) needed to take on the responsibilities involved in participating in a Cochrane Review Group. The value of an exploratory meeting may sometimes be to make it clear that, for one or more of a variety of reasons, efforts to establish a Cochrane Review Group are either premature, or possibly misguided.

A representative of the Monitoring and Registration Committee (MaRC) should be invited to attend the exploratory meeting(s). If an MaRC representative cannot attend (either in person, by VOIP or by teleconference), the organisers of the exploratory meeting(s) should ensure they discuss the registration process and a provisional agenda for the meeting(s) with an MaRC representative in advance. The aim of MaRC involvement is to help to ensure that the meeting(s) is/are as useful as possible to inform the proposed CRG's potential application for formal registration. There should be formal feedback to the MaRC representative, CCSG representative, and Entity Executive, to ensure effective communication, which should include a person-to-person discussion (e.g. by telephone) with the MaRC representative, and circulation of the exploratory meeting(s) minutes to the MaRC representative.