Flinders Filters

Finding the existing evidence base is a prerequisite to implementing evidence, however searching for this evidence is difficult.

The role of Flinders Filters

Flinders Filters is a specialist research group developing the science and practice of effective evidence retrieval. It is part of the Research Centre for Palliative Care Death and Dying (RePaDD) Research Centre for Palliative Care Death and Dying (RePaDD).

Flinders Filters has evolved from research originally carried out within CareSearch which led to the first palliative care search filter which underpins the search retrieval for palliative care literature within CareSearch [1-3]. The initial work also explored the effectiveness of palliative care clinician searching [4].

What is a search filter?

Flinders creates “search filters” which are evidence-based literature search strategies, developed using an explicit methodology and tested using a gold standard test comparison study design and detailed in published papers. Each provides a standardised, systematic subject-based search with a known level of performance. Embedding the search filter into a URL for a database such as PubMed provides the searcher with access to a high performing literature search simply by clicking a link. This capacity for ready implementation is a powerful feature of this research programme.

Flinders Filters and CareSearch are developing an ever-increasing collection of subject-based search filters of national interest and international significance, which are relevant to palliative care [5-10]