Table 5

Identification, selection, and appraisal flow chart

Identification

Identification tool:

7167 citations retrieved from the literature using broad search strategy (Appendix 3) and scrutinized using identification tool

1. Does the citation indicate health-related research?

2. Does the citation indicate PR?

3. Does the citation indicate some form of data (process or outcome)?

Selection

Selection tool:

594 citations and their full-text articles examined using selection tool

1. Does the full-text paper still indicate health-related research?

2. Does the full-text paper indicate that participation occurred in the following three areas:

a. partners were involved in identifying or setting the research questions?

b. partners were involved in setting the methodology or collecting data or analysing the data?

c. partners were involved in uptake or dissemination of the research findings?

3. Does the full-text paper describe the research setting? (indicate community-based, organizational, or other (describe))

4. Does the full-text paper indicate empirical research (i.e., that there is some description of methods, data collection and analysis)? (Specify the methodology)

5. Does the full-text paper describe PR-related outcomes?

6. Does the full-text paper describe PR processes or contexts (or is there a reference to the process/context in a cited companion paper)?

7. Does the full-text paper indicate intervention research?

8. Does the full-text paper indicate a community-based setting?

Appraisal: 83 sets of articles assessed using appraisal tool (contacted PIs to ensure all publications for each study)

Appraisal tool:

1. Did we receive an answer from the principle investigator confirming we have the complete set of publications for each study or providing additional publications?;

2. Are there rich descriptors of the outcomes?;

3. Are there rich descriptors of the participatory process?

23 studies comprising 276 publications for qualitative synthesis using realist review methods

Jagosh et al. Implementation Science 2011 6:24   doi:10.1186/1748-5908-6-24