Please join the librarians at the Biomedical Library to learn how to conduct a systematic review.

Register here

A Systematic Review critically assesses ALL relevant studies that address particular clinical issues. It provides a high level of evidence on the effectiveness of healthcare interventions. 

To help researchers develop a high quality systematic review that meets all requirements, the Biomedical Library is presenting a Systematic Review workshop series. The workshops will  introduce the systematic review process, describe systematic literature search protocol in accordance with PRISMA standards, and present citation management software to handle search results. 

The series includes three sessions. You can take all of the sessions to understand the entire systematic review process, or take any of the sessions to hone your skills.

Session 1: Introduction

This session will introduce you to what systematic reviews are, an overview of the entire process, and what services the Penn health sciences libraries provide. This session will highlight the features of systematic review in comparison with other types of reviews, describe standards (e.g., PRISMA) and a framework for a systematic review with a focus on literature searching, and introduce the resources and services available for Penn faculty, staff, students and clinicians.

When: Tuesday Sept 10, 12:00pm – 1:00pm Registration for this date is FULL

When: Thursday Sept 12 12:00pm-1:00pm

Where: Conference Room, Biomedical Library

Register for Session 1 (Sept 10)

Register for Session 1 (Sept 12)

Session 2: Systematic Literature Searching (Database Searching)

This session will provide you with concrete steps in constructing comprehensive literature search syntax. Topics to be covered include identifying potential resources to be searched, utilizing a protocol to collect relevant search terms (both controlled vocabulary and keywords), and applying special techniques to develop effective search strategies.

When: Tuesday Sept 17 12:00pm – 1:30pm Registration for this date is FULL

When: Friday Sept 20 12:00pm-1:30pm

Where: Training Lab, Biomedical Library

Register for Session 2 (Sept 17).

Register for Session 2 (Sept 20).

Session 3: Citation Management

This session will focus on using citation management software to manage and organize your systematic review search results. EndNote software will be used to demonstrate how to import, deduplicate, and screen your citations. Specialized screening software that can be used with systematic review projects will also be discussed.

When: Tuesday Sept 24 12:00pm – 1:30pm Registration for this date is FULL.

When: Thursday Sept 26 12:00pm-1:30pm

Where: Training Lab, Biomedical Library

Register for Session 3 (Sept 24)

Register for Session 3 (Sept 26)