Press release
36/2010
23.08.2010,
Kuopio
The Cochrane Collaboration is a worldwide network which publishes reports, also called systematic reviews, on what works in health care. The Finnish Institute of Occupational Health is the only institution authorized to organize the publishing of reports on Occupational Safety and Health interventions. The new unit is widely supported by e.g. WHO and EU OSHA.
From July 30th 2010, the Finnish Institute of Occupational Health, with the support of the Finnish Ministry of Social Affairs and Health, will accommodate the Cochrane Occupational Safety and Health Review Group. This is a significant achievement, as it is the first unit of its kind in Finland. The only other Review Group in the Nordic countries is in Denmark. The Occupational Safety and Health Review Group is responsible for organizing the production and publication of systematic literature reviews on the effectiveness of occupational safety and health interventions worldwide. Internationally, the unit is supported by WHO and EU OSHA.
The Review Group’s editorial office is situated in Kuopio. Its objective is to make the knowledge obtained from systematic reviews available to everyone, and with it to improve the quality of work life and well-being at work. The reviews published by the group aim to find effective ways in which occupational or work-related diseases and exposures to harmful substances can be decreased.
Experts at FIOH have participated in reviews looking at, for example, how best to reduce noise-induced hearing loss or how screening professional drivers for drugs and alcohol can be used to decrease accidents and injuries. To date, occupational safety and health is the main topic of 45 reviews published in the Cochrane Library.
The core of the Cochrane Collaboration consists of 53 Review Groups which function as scientific journals. Each decides, within its own scope, on the topics worth reviewing and ensures that the resulting systematic reviews are of high quality. The reviews condense all high quality research evidence from all over the world on the effectiveness of particular interventions on specific problems. They are published in one joint electronic publication known as the Cochrane Library, one of the most prestigious (Impact Factor 5.653) and trusted sources of information in the health sciences.
Additional information:
researcher Jani Ruotsalainen
www.cohf.fi, www.cochrane.org , www.terveysportti.fi
Modified 23.08.2010 Sointu Högström