LibGuides: Critical Appraisal Tools: Critical Appraisal Tools

Critical Appraisal Tools

The following tools and worksheets can help you critically appraise research articles for randomized controlled trials, systematic reviews/meta analysis, evaluations and diagnostic tests and test the validity of your own research.

AACN Levels of Evidence
Help nurses determine strength of research studies, assess findings, and evaluate evidence (Duquesne users should install LibKey Nomad to see full text)
AMSTAR: A Measurement Tool to Assess Systematic Reviews
AMSTAR Checklist to assess the quality of a systematic review by helping users differentiate between systematic reviews, focusing on their methodological quality and expert consensus
AOTA Critically Appraised Papers
American Occupational Therapy Association Critically Appraised Papers has a CAP Worksheet and CAP Guidelines for researchers to complete before submission to Evidence Exchange. The worksheet is based on the McMaster quantitative critical appraisal form.
Centre for Evidence Based Medicine (Oxford) CATmaker and EBM calculator
CEBM's computer assisted critical appraisal tool CATmaker and the interactive evidence based medicine calculator. CATmaker requires a file to be downloaded for use.
Centre for Evidence Based Medicine (Oxford) Critical Appraisal Tools
CEBM's worksheets to assess systematic reviews, diagnostic, prognosis, and RCTs article types.
Cochrane Assessing Risk of Bias in a Randomized Trial
Cochrane Handbook chapter detailing the Cochrane risk of bias assessment for randomized trials
Critical Appraisal Skills Programme
The CASP provides worksheets to appraise randomized control trials, systematic reviews, cohort studies, case control studies, qualitative research, economic evaluations, diagnostic tests, and clinical prediction rules.
Dartmouth Biomedical Libraries
Dartmouth provides a series of worksheets designed to aid in formulating clinical questions, appraising the evidence, and applying the evidence to the patient.
Diffusion of Innovations in Health Service Organisations
Includes quality checklists for experimental studies, quasi-experimental studies, attribution studies, questionnaire surveys, qualitative studies, mixed methods, "real-world" implementation studies, and action research.
EPHPP Quantitative Study Quality Assessment Tool
Canada's Effective Public Health Panacea Project (EPHPP) Quality Assessment Tool for Quantitative Studies, which critically appraises quantitative studies on public health topics. The tool is a linked PDF and there are also links to articles explaining the tool. To access these articles through Duquesne, click "more" below
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1. Copy the citation for the article on the EPHPP page
2. Go to the Gumberg Library homepage and click PubMed under the DUQSearch box
3. Paste the citation into the PubMed search box and click search
4. Click the article title then click the "Full Text Finder" button on the article entry page
5. Click on the link to the full text
GRADE (The Grading of Recommendations Assessment, Development and Evaluation)
GRADE working group guidelines and publications for grading the quality of evidence in healthcare research and policy
HCPRDU Evaluation Tool for Mixed Methods Studies
University of Salford Health Care Practice R&D Unit critical appraisal tool to assess the quality of mixed methods studies
HCPRDU Evaluation Tool for Qualitative Studies
University of Salford Health Care Practice R&D Unit critical appraisal tool to assess the quality of qualitative studies
HCPRDU Evaluation Tool for Quantitative Studies
University of Salford Health Care Practice R&D Unit critical appraisal tool to assess the quality of quantitative studies
The Integrative Review by Whittemore and Knafl
Benchmark article describing how to perform integrative reviews. Table 1 of the article which includes a scale to determine methodological rigor and data relevance for evidence.
JAMA Evidence Critical Appraisal Worksheets
Critical appraisal worksheets on topics including diagnosis, harm, therapy and qualitative research from JAMA Evidence
JAMA Series on Step-By-Step Critical Appraisal
Listing from Johns Hopkins of the JAMA User's Guide to Medical Literature with each step in critical appraisal process. Read more to learn how to get access to the full text through Duquesne
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1. Copy the citation for the JAMA article
2. Go to the Gumberg Library homepage and click PubMed under the DUQSearch box
3. Paste the citation into the PubMed search box and click search
4. Click the article title then click the "Full Text Finder" button on the article entry page
5. Click on the link to the full text
Joanna Briggs Institute Critical Tools
Guidelines from McMaster University in Canada on assessing the strength of qualitative and quantitative studies, specifically focusing on Occupational Therapy research. The quantitative and qualitative worksheets and guidelines are found within the table on the page.
Johns Hopkins Nursing Evidence Based Practice
A foundational book for evidenced-based practice. Check out the appendices of the ebook for evidence appraisal tools
Knowledge Translation Program
The Toronto based KTP has critical appraisal worksheets for systematic reviews, prognosis, diagnosis, harm and therapy
Mixed Methods Appraisal Tool (MMAT) Version 2018
The MMAT assesses the quality of qualitative, quantitative, and mixed methods studies.
PEDro
PEDro (Physiotherapy Evidence Database) Scale is an excellent webpage which provides access to a range of appraisal resources including a tutorial and appraisal tool.
Quality Assessment Tool for Studies of Diverse Designs (QATSDD)
This paper describes QATSDD, an interdisciplinary study quality assessment of tool that is particularly useful to health services researchers in psychology, sociology, and nursing
ROBIS
University of Bristol tool for assessing the risk of bias in systematic reviews of interventions, diagnosis, prognosis and etiology.
Scottish Intercollegiate Guidelines Network
SIGN worksheets to critically appraise systematic reviews, RCT, cohort studies, case-controlled studies, diagnostic studies and economic studies
Simulation Research Rubric
The Simulation Research Rubric provides a reliable method for grading the quality of simulation based research reports
SORT (Strength of Recommendation Taxonomy)
The SORT scale addresses the quality, quantity, and consistency of evidence in individual studies or bodies of evidence
STROBE (Strengthening the Reporting of OBservational studies in Epidemiology)
Addresses cohort, case-control, and cross-sectional studies