Zachary Munn

 

A/Professor Zachary Munn is an advocate for evidence-based healthcare and for ensuring patients receive the best care possible based on the best available evidence. He is the director of the Transfer Science program of the Joanna Briggs Institute (JBI).

JBI is an evidence-based healthcare research institute working towards a vision of the world in which the best available evidence is used to inform decision making at the point of care globally. JBI hosts the Joanna Briggs Collaboration, a network of 80 centres and groups with thousands of people contributing to this vision across the globe.

In his role as Director of Transfer Science, A/Prof Zachary Munn leads the development and coordination of the Institute’s educational courses, the development of systematic review and implementation software tools, and the promotion and publication of the collaboration’s methodologies. A/Prof Munn is the current Chair of the International JBI Scientific Committee and has been involved in the conduct of dozens of systematic reviews, clinical guidelines, evidence implementation and health services research projects. A/Prof Zachary Munn is an active member of the G-I-N Australia and New Zealand regional group and the G-I-N Tech group. He is also the Director of the JBI Adelaide GRADE Center, the first GRADE Center in Australia. With a clinical background in medical imaging, nowadays A/Prof Munn is considered more of a methodologist and implementation scientist.

Although A/Prof Munn is involved in many systematic reviews and guideline projects, perhaps the most rewarding part of his role is the chance to work hands on with clinicians and health services to facilitate the implementation of evidence into practice, particularly in low resource and LMIC settings. A/Prof Munn lives happily in Adelaide, South Australia with his wife and two children.

Vision statement for G-I-N 2017-2020

Trustworthy clinical guidelines are critical for the improvement of health outcomes for patients globally. The Guidelines International Network, as the preeminent international community of systematic reviewers and guideline developers, plays a pivotal role in facilitating access to guidelines, building communities of practice amongst guideline developers, and championing the need for robust clinical guidelines to inform healthcare.

I know from personal experience how involvement with G-I-N can open up your eyes to new information and advances in guideline development, and I would like to see all guideline developers internationally have a similar opportunity to receive this eye-opening experience. As such, my vision for G-I-N is to see an ever expanding network of guideline developers, particularly in Australia and New Zealand and also from across the Joanna Briggs Collaboration. In this way, more guideline developers will become exposed to the philosophy of G-I-N and have the ability to communicate with other organisations facing the challenges of creating methodologically robust but still practical and implementable clinical practice guidelines, in a timely fashion. As a member of G-I-N Tech, I am interested in how software and automation may play a role in this endeavour.

As G-I-N expands, it will be of increasing importance to turn our attention to low resource and LMIC settings, where the complex problems presented by the increasing burden of disease and lack of resources requires significant attention and consideration by the international guidelines community.

Twitter: @ZacMunn

Email: vice-chair@g-i-n.net