Monthly Archives: February 2023

JBI SUMARI Systematic Review Software

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The MSK Library supports researchers working on systematic review (SR) projects with a variety of resources and services and training opportunities. An additional SR tool option available to MSK users, that is included as part of the library’s subscription to the Joanna Briggs Institute (JBI) EBP Database (OVID), is an “EBP Tool” called JBI SUMARI.

According to the vendor:

This comprehensive software suite has been developed to assist users on developing, conducting and reporting on systematic reviews of evidence related to the feasibility, appropriateness, meaningfulness and effectiveness of health care interventions or professional activities.  

Similar to Covidence (another systematic review project management software tool currently available to MSK researchers), JBI SUMARI includes functionality for: Project Management, Protocol Builder, Import of Studies, Study Screening, Assessment of Risk of Bias, Data Extraction, Data Synthesis, and Report Writing. To learn more about what you can do with JBI SUMARI and how it can be used in conjunction with Covidence (to make the most of certain functionality that may be missing in one or the other of these tools), be sure to read this published review:

Piper C. System for the Unified Management, Assessment, and Review of Information (SUMARI). J Med Libr Assoc. 2019 Oct;107(4):634–6. doi: 10.5195/jmla.2019.790. Epub 2019 Oct 1. PMCID: PMC6774554. 

The JBI SUMARI Knowledge Base is also a great place to look for guidance on using this tool. Two areas worth noting where JBI SUMARI differentiates itself from Covidence are with its built-in Protocol Builder capabilities and its Synthesis functionality – features that are currently not available in Covidence.

Questions? Ask Us at the MSK Library!  

International Love Data Week: Let me count the ways!

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Do you love data? Are you interested in learning more about how proper data handling can enhance your research?

Organizations around the world are offering a number of events to help celebrate International Love Data Week, February 13-17, 2023.

ICPSR has a robust listing of events and workshops to help you sharpen your skills: ICPSR List of Events.

The Network of the National Library of Medicine (NNLM) is also hosting daily scheduled events: NNLM Love Data Week Schedule.

Kick-off of Love Data Week, February 13, also coincides with the MSK Library’s monthly Research Data Management: Best Practices class. Join us for a discussion of the FAIR principles and practical steps you can take every day to develop healthy data habits: Class Sign-up.

For many researchers, data management has taken on a special meaning as NIH has rolled out its new Data Management and Sharing Policy (January 25, 2023), which requires that all NIH grant applicants include a Data Management Plan with their submission. The MSK Library has been collaborating with administrative offices, grant editors, and researchers across the organization to provide guidance, develop tools, and centralize information through a new online resource, our NIH Data Management and Sharing Policy LibGuide.

If you have any questions about research data or want to chat with someone who not only counts the ways he loves data but is also likely to perform a Chi-Squared analysis on the ways he loves data, please reach out to Anthony Dellureficio, Associate Librarian for Data Management Services.

New Synapse Feature: Export Your Publications Directly to an Excel Spreadsheet

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Synapse is used by many of our faculty, staff, and departments to track their publications and collect bibliographies and statistics for annual reporting. While bibliographies can be formatted directly within Synapse, there are other instances where one might want to export the data for further organization and analysis. This new feature allows you to export your or your department’s publications directly to a CSV file (Excel spreadsheet). Previously, Synapse only allowed for export to RIS format, which can be read by citation management tools such as Endnote. While this is still a great option for many people and purposes, not everyone is familiar with using Endnote, and there are cases where a spreadsheet is the easier or more appropriate solution to our users’ needs:

  • Simple and quick way to see which of your publications have a PMCID, and which might still need to be submitted for grant compliance.
  • Keeping internal administrative notes such as the role of postdoctoral trainees in the publication, special grants, and awards that funded the research.
  • Quickly collect a list of identifiers (such as DOI, PMID) that can then be used to query an external database such as Web of Science, Scopus, or PubMed.
  • CSV files can be imported for use with data visualization and analytics tools, such as Tableau.

To export, simply select the “Export to Endnote/Excel” option from any “Works” section of an author or group profile page. Select “Export as CSV” on the following screen and the file will be automatically downloaded to your computer. 

For more information, contact us.