Subjective judgements – no more, no less? A response to Malterud, Bjelland and Elvbakken

Abstract

Abstract In 2016, three researchers published a report where they concluded that systematic reviews from my institution, the Norwegian Knowledge Centre for the Health Services, are of little use for health policy decision-making. Based on their reading of the conclusion section in 14 reports, they argue that our systematic reviews are not useful due to their lack of clear and conclusive findings. I have reviewed the same documents and I beg to differ. Unfortunately, the description of their methodological approach is both sparse and difficult to grasp, making it very hard to understand how they arrived at their conclusions.

Keywords

• Evidence-based medicine
• Systematic reviews
• Qualitative methods