The ongoing COVID-19 pandemic is creating overwhelming demand for accurate information from the health system leaders. The REAL platform goal is to work alongside public and private sector health system leaders to meet that demand by offering relevant and timely synthesized research evidence to inform decision-makers as the pandemic continues.
The website provides 3 main ways of interaction: Submitting questions about Covid-19, Reviewing REAL Notes already published or by Sharing Rapid Evidence Access Link knowledge with others.
Navigating through the REAL website, users can easily access on the Home Page the latest comments, uploads and questions in progress that are being worked on by the REAL team. At the bottom of the home page, the users can submit a question by filling in a simple form which contains just a few identifiers, such as first and last name, email address. You can also add your interest in the question, what problem you are trying to solve, what population will be target with this response, if you previously researched the topic, if you would like to share information or files, as well as the urgency of the matter. This information will help the website collaborators to improve their answers to your question.
If users do not have a specific question, they can access the Questions & Answers page. This page contains the following topics:
REAL NOTES: high-level summaries that address critical COVID-19 related questions, such as “What are the risks and benefits of getting a flu shot during the COVID-19 pandemic?” or “How does COVID-19 affect pregnancy?”
REAL TOUGH QUESTIONS: snapshot of resources gathered to address questions that currently do not have definite, evidence-based answers, such as “How long do people with COVID-19 shed the virus?”
REAL QUESTIONS IN PROGRESS: questions that REAL team is working hard to answer and transform them as REAL Notes
By clicking in any topic, the user can easily subscribe for updates, share it in a myriad of social medias, print it, post comments and upvotes. Users can also reply to other comments, creating a community aspect. All of these actions help the website to prioritize the topics that are of the most interest of the users.
At last, users have also access to a Resources page, a repository of all the evidence used in the production of the REAL Notes, as well as any additional resources that may be of value to the users.
Working with an expert scientific network of Canadian COVID-19 researchers, clinical collaborators, and healthcare stakeholders, such as CanCOVID and The Ontario COVID-19 Science Advisory Table, the REAL website is an excellent platform where users can keep up with updated and accurate information, as well as they can evaluate and report on emerging evidence relevant to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Sitios electrónicos y fuentes:
Dlsph.utoronto.ca
Cancovid.ca
Covid19-sciencetable.ca
