Season 2, Episode 5: From Questions to Confidence: Mastering Evidence-Based Methods with Dr. Romina Brignardello-Peterson
On this week's episode of The Emerging Scholar Podcast, we continue our ongoing conversation on evidence-based medicine, building on the discussion we had this summer with Dr. Gordon Guyatt. Today, we're joined by one of his colleagues and mentees, Dr. Romina Brignardello-Petersen, an Associate Professor in the Department of Health Research Methods, Evidence, and Impact at McMaster University, and a leading expert in evidence synthesis and guideline methodology.
Dr. Brignardello-Petersen shares her work developing rigorous methods for synthesizing evidence and supporting evidence-informed decision-making. With training in dentistry, biostatistics, and clinical epidemiology from institutions in Chile, Toronto, and McMaster, she brings an international perspective to this essential area of research.
The conversation focuses on systematic reviews and the GRADE approach—gold-standard tools for assessing certainty of evidence and translating research into practice. We break down the differences between systematic, narrative, and scoping reviews, walk through how to conduct a high-quality systematic review, and discuss how GRADE helps communicate evidence to decision-makers. Whether you’re planning your first review or refining your research approach, this episode offers practical guidance for emerging scholars at every stage.
Papers & Resources That We Touched On In This Episode:
- What are the different types of literature review?
- Systematic reviews of the literature: an introduction to current methods
- Assessing the certainty of the evidence in systematic reviews: importance, process, and use
- PRISMA reporting guidelines for systematic reviews
- GRADE Guidance: Update on Developing Good Practice Statements in Guidelines
- PROSPERO: The database for registering or searching for upcoming systematic reviews
- Core GRADE 1: overview of the Core GRADE approach
- Core GRADE: A simpler, stronger approach to evidence assessment
Guests
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Dr. Romina Brignardello-Petersen
Dr. Romina Brignardello-Petersen is a clinician-scientist and international leader in evidence-based health care. She is an Associate Professor and Associate Chair of Education in the Department of Health Research Methods, Evidence, and Impact at McMaster University, and a senior methodologist with the GRADE Working Group. With training in dentistry, biostatistics, and clinical epidemiology from institutions in Chile, Toronto, and McMaster, she brings a global perspective to how health evidence is synthesized and applied.
Her research focuses on advancing the methods used to synthesize evidence and support evidence-informed decision-making in health care. A leading expert in systematic reviews and the GRADE approach, she works with gold-standard tools for assessing certainty of evidence and developing clinical practice recommendations. For emerging scholars, these skills are essential—whether planning a first study, writing a literature review, or contributing to clinical guidelines. In this episode, we unpack the key differences between systematic, narrative, and scoping reviews, and why those distinctions matter.