Objective To evaluate the quality of evidence of systematic reviews or meta-analyses regarding outcomes in nursing field in China using the Grade system, so as to get known of the status of the quality of evidence and promote the application of the evaluation of the quality of evidence of systematic reviews. Methods The quality of evidence regarding the included outcomes was input, extracted and qualitatively graded, using GRADEpro 3.6 software. Then, we carefully analyzed and elaborated the factors of downgrading and upgrading that affects the quality of evidence in the process of evaluation. Results 53 systematic reviews or meta-analyses involving 188 outcomes were identified and evaluated. The results showed that high, moderate, low and very low levels of quality of evidence were 2.7%, 27.1%, 51.1%, and 19.1%, respectively; and low-level quality of evidence accounted for the most. Conclusion The quality of evidence produced by systematic reviews or meta-analyses in nursing field in China is poor and urgently needs improvement. The reviewers should abide by the methodological standards in the process of making systematic reviews or meta-analyses. The quality of evidence in terms of each outcome should be evaluated and fully reported.
The formulation process of recommendations in evidence-based clinical practice guidelines was often complex and cumbersome. This paper described the evolution of levels of evidence and strength of recommendations in medical research and analyzed existing problems when making recommendations. We also summarized and introduced the method of formulating the final recommendation. At present, there isn’t a perfect and uniform method to guide the formulation of recommendations. But some organizations provided different content frameworks or auxiliary tools to guide formulation of recommendations. Developers of evidence-based clinical practice guidelines can learn from their experiences, combine with their own characteristics of guidelines such as specific target population and specific clinical situations, establish a rational method of recommendations formation.