Method of synthesis

As the NIHR funded evaluations were mixed methods, and the other included evaluations were largely qualitative, we performed a narrative synthesis of the evidence. Consistent with an integrative approach to synthesising evidence, the narrative synthesis aimed to present a descriptive summary of findings across studies and then to generate, across reported findings, a number of themes relevant to the aims of this review. The original commissioning brief anticipated that evaluations may address organisational form, structure and processes, funding arrangements, nature of formative partnerships, engagement of health care users and the general public, emerging impacts and potential for sustainability of change [10]. We used these themes as a guiding framework to help answer our research questions on organisation, impact and evaluation. An iterative process of adaptation and refinement was undertaken by two researchers to generate initial themes, and these were further refined via consensus discussions with the full research team.

Given the interdisciplinary nature of CLAHRC work and the resulting diversity of papers being reviewed, it was particularly important to minimise individual disciplinary biases when synthesising the literature. This was accomplished through regular reflective discussions within the research team (which included two organisation and management scholars and two health services researchers) as well as through internal review from academic colleagues and CLAHRC managers in the role of ‘critical friends’.