Wikis and collaborative writing applications in health care: a scoping review protocol

Area of Science:

• Health Informatics
• Knowledge Translation
• Collaborative Technologies

Background:

• The increasing use of collaborative writing tools (e.g., wikis, Google Docs) necessitates understanding their role in healthcare knowledge translation (KT).
• Existing systematic reviews have not specifically focused on collaborative writing applications within the medical sector.
• There is a need to synthesize evidence on the impact and influencing factors of these tools as KT interventions.

Purpose of the Study:

• To conduct a scoping review of collaborative writing applications in healthcare.
• To map the literature, compare application features, and assess their effects as KT tools.
• To identify barriers and facilitators to their use and develop an action plan and research agenda.

Main Methods:

• A six-stage scoping review framework will be employed.
• Studies will be identified, selected, and data charted using EPPI-Reviewer software.
• The Knowledge to Action (KTA) framework will guide the synthesis and reporting of findings.

Main Results:

• This study will provide a comprehensive overview of the evidence base for collaborative writing applications in healthcare.
• It will detail the features of various applications and their documented effects (positive and negative) on KT.
• Barriers and facilitators influencing the adoption and effectiveness of these tools will be inventoried.

Conclusions:

• This review will inform the optimal use of collaborative writing applications in healthcare KT.
• It will advance KT science by testing evaluation tools for social media and identifying research gaps.
• The findings will contribute to a relevant research agenda for collaborative writing software in healthcare.