Abstract
In 2009, the Canadian Institutes of Health Research, Health Canada, and other stakeholders established the Drug Safety and Effectiveness Network (DSEN) to address the paucity of information on drug safety and effectiveness in real-world settings. This unique network invited knowledge users (e.g., policy makers) to submit queries to be answered by relevant research teams. The research teams were launched via open calls for team grants focused in relevant methodologic areas. We describe the development and implementation of one of these collaborating centres, the Methods and Application Group for Indirect Comparisons (MAGIC). MAGIC was created to provide high-quality knowledge synthesis including network meta-analysis to meet knowledge user needs. Since 2011, MAGIC responded to 54% of queries submitted to DSEN. In the past 5 years, MAGIC produced 26 reports and 49 publications. It led to 15 trainees who entered industry, academia, and government. More than 10 000 people participated in courses delivered by MAGIC team members. Most importantly, MAGIC knowledge syntheses influenced practice and policy (e.g., use of biosimilars for patients with diabetes and use of smallpox vaccinations in people with contraindications) provincially, nationally, and internationally.
Introduction
In 2009, the Canadian Institutes of Health Research (CIHR), Health Canada, and other stakeholders partnered to establish the Drug Safety and Effectiveness Network (DSEN). DSEN was developed to address a knowledge gap in Canada, namely, the lack of information on the safety and effectiveness of drugs used in real-world settings (DSEN 2020). Its objectives are to increase the evidence on drug safety and effectiveness available to regulators, policy makers, clinicians, and patients and to build capacity in Canada in this field. DSEN includes a virtual network of linked collaborating centres, a Coordinating Office that is situated in the CIHR, and a Steering Committee (SC) that includes representatives from various stakeholders including the Canadian Institute for Health Information (CIHI) and the Canadian Agency for Drugs and Technologies in Health (CADTH) as well as patients/citizens, clinicians, and policy makers. In this manuscript, we describe the development, implementation, and outcomes of one of the DSEN collaborating centres.
