Robert Gordon University (RGU) played host to an international research conference this month.
The Joanna Briggs Collaboration European Symposium, which took place on Friday 19 May, saw students, clinicians and academics meet to discuss the latest advances in evidence synthesis, transfer and implementation to promote evidence-based practice in a range of healthcare settings.
The theme for the symposium was linking evidence, policy and practice to create ‘Better Connections for Better Healthcare’.
Delegates were on hand to hear talks from leading figures, such as RGU’s Professor Catriona Kennedy, Beatrice Cant from the Scottish Intercollegiate Guidelines Network (SIGN) and Dr David Caesar, National Clinical Advisor to Scotland’s Chief Medical Officer.
There was also a series of workshops for MSc and PhD students from a number of Scottish and European universities, where they learned and presented about various aspects of systematic review methodology.
The event was hosted by the Scottish Centre for Evidence-based Multi-professional Practice (EBMPP), a Joanna Briggs Institute Centre of Excellence, based in the university’s School of Health Sciences at Garthdee.
The Joanna Briggs Institute (JBI) is the international, not-for-profit, research and development centre within the Faculty of Health Sciences at the University of Adelaide.
The JBI collaborates with over 70 entities across the world to promote the synthesis of evidence, through identifying feasible, appropriate and effective healthcare practices to assist in the improvement of healthcare outcomes globally.
Dr Kay Cooper, a reader in RGU’s School of Health Sciences, Director of the Scottish Centre for EBMPP and Chair of the European Regional Group of the Joanna Briggs Collaboration, said: “It was a privilege to host this important and strategic symposium and present delegates with an opportunity to meet and learn from leading policy-makers, practitioners and researchers from across Europe.
“It was a very full day, with presentations, methodology workshops and debates, which saw full engagement from almost 100 people in attendance. I’d like to thank my colleagues Pamela Kirkpatrick, Dr Lyndsay Alexander and the staff from the School of Health Sciences for ensuring the successful smooth running of the activities.“Congratulations should also go to RGU’s Dr Audrey Stephen for being honoured with the award for best poster presentation. Her work on the support needs of adult family members who face a sudden adult death stood out to the judges from Romania and Switzerland and made her a worthy winner.”