Cochrane is launching a new eight-part series of Cochrane Learning Live webinars designed to help systematic reviewers understand and apply the GRADE (Grading of Recommendations, Assessment, Development and Evaluation) framework in evaluating the certainty of evidence in their systematic reviews.
Beginning in April, the series will bring together leading experts from the GRADE Working Group and the Cochrane GRADEing Methods Group to deliver comprehensive training on the principles and practical application of GRADE.
The training series reflects Cochrane’s ongoing commitment to building capacity for evidence synthesis and supporting authors and reviewers worldwide.
“GRADE is important because it provides a transparent and structured framework for interpreting systematic review findings and evaluating the certainty of evidence. This is critical for informing healthcare decision-making, particularly when developing recommendations. Ensuring that reviewers have access to practical, accessible GRADE training is therefore essential to support reviewers in Cochrane and beyond produce high‑quality, trustworthy evidence.”
– Dr Sue Brennan, Cochrane Australia and Melbourne GRADE Centre
The webinars will be held between April and November this year, their topics and speakers are:
- Introduction to assessing the certainty of evidence with GRADE, 20 April, delivered by Professor Holger Schünemann (Chair of the GRADE Working Group and Co-convenor Cochrane GRADEing methods group)
- Thresholds and rating the certainty of evidence using GRADE, 19 May, delivered by Assistant Professor Wojtek Wiercioch (Director of the McMaster GRADE Centre, Canada and Faculty, Michael G. DeGroote Cochrane Canada Centre)
- When to rate down the certainty of evidence: rating the impact on the effect estimate, not the concern, 2 June, delivered by Professor Ignacio Neumann (GRADE Book editor, Director GRADE Southern Cone Network)
- Evaluating limitations in the design, execution or reporting of studies when rating the certainty of evidence using GRADE, 14 July, delivered by Professor Nicole Skoetz (Director Institute of Public Health, University of Cologne and Co-ordinating Editor Cochrane Haematology and Head Cochrane ESU Germany/UK) and Associate Professor Jun Xia, (Co-Director of the Nottingham Ningbo GRADE Center, China)
- Evaluating indirectness, details to follow
- Evaluating imprecision and inconsistency, details to follow
- GRADE methods for integrating evidence from randomized and non-randomized studies, 25 October, delivered by Professor Carlos A. Cuello-Garcia (McMaster University and Tecnologico de Monterrey)
- Summarizing synthesis findings using GRADE, 12 November, delivered by Assistant professor Miranda Langendam (Co-Director of the Dutch GRADE Network and Co-convenor Cochrane GRADEing methods group)
