All health researchers should begin their training by preparing at least one systematic review

One of the founding principles of evidence-based medicine is to use the best available evidence to inform decisions made by patients and clinicians. Systematic reviews have made significant contributions to the pool of best available evidence by systematically gathering, appraising and summarising evidence to answer a given healthcare question. Indeed, the current UK Chief Medical Officer, Dame Sally Davies, has emphasised that ‘by removing uncertainties in science and research, systematic reviews ensure that only the most effective and best value interventions are adopted by the NHS and social care providers’.