Multimorbidity as an index condition for clinical trials, meta-analyses and clinical guidelines-is a paradigm shift needed?
Supervisors:
Professor Gillian Mead, Centre for Population Health Sciences (University of Edinburgh)
Professor Nazir Lone, Usher Institute (University of Edinburgh)
Professor Alex Todhunter-Brown, Glasgow Caledonian University
Dr Amanda Barugh, Centre for Clinical Brain Sciences (University of Edinburgh)
Summary:
Multimorbidity has emerged as one of the greatest challenges facing health services, both now and in the coming decades. High quality evidence is needed to address multimorbidity. Cochrane produces trusted and timely synthesized evidence addressing the most important questions for health and care decision making, but Cochrane reviews have traditionally focused on single diseases.
This PhD project will explore the extent to which Cochrane reviews current address the multimorbidity paradigm, by scrutinising existing influential reviews and protocols, and also the trials included in reviews. The characteristics of trial participants in the reviews will be compared with individuals in disease and population registers. A key output will be new methods to address and report multimorbidity in Cochrane reviews. An Advisory group of lay people including people with lived experience of multimorbidity will work in collaboration with the student to design and deliver the project.
The supervisors (Professor Mead, Professor Todhunter-Brown, Professor Lone and Dr Barugh) bring extensive expertise in evidence synthesis in Cochrane reviews, multimorbidity in clinical practice and research and meaningful patient and public involvement in research. Professor Guthrie, an academic general practitioner who is the clinical mentor, is a world leader in multimorbidity in research and clinical practice.