Cochrane (organisation)
British nonprofit for reviews of medical research (formed 1993)
Cochrane is a British international charitable organisation formed to synthesize medical research findings to facilitate evidence-based choices about health interventions involving health professionals, patients and policy makers. It includes 53 review groups that are based at research institutions worldwide. Cochrane has over 37,000 volunteer experts from around the world.
The group conducts systematic reviews of healthcare interventions and diagnostic tests and publishes them in the Cochrane Library. While Cochrane reviews typically focus on randomized controlled trials, some reviews, particularly in areas such as public and occupational health, also incorporate other study designs. These may include non-randomised observational studies as well as controlled before–after (CBA) studies and interrupted time-series studies.
According to the Library, articles are available via one-click access, though some may require registration or a subscription.
Structure
The Cochrane Collaboration is a charity registered in the UK. The trustees for the charity are the members of its Governing Board, elected by members. David Sackett was the organisation's first chair. That position is currently held by Susan Phillips.
Begin with the source’s own compact description: “Cochrane (organisation)” is british nonprofit for reviews of medical research (formed 1993). The dossier treats that line as a proposition to test through Cochrane, organisation and British, not as a finished interpretation.
Why this record matters
The phrase “british nonprofit for reviews of medical research (formed 1993)” supplies a clear boundary for inquiry. It also exposes the unanswered questions: who defined that boundary, when it became stable and which sources sit outside it.
Named sources, stable identifiers and responsible institutions provide the strongest route from overview to verifiable evidence. The source revision retrieved here is dated Jun 10, 2026. The linked authority identifier is Q1105202. VIAF identifies the subject as 131517739. The Library of Congress control number is n96800351. 3 of 5 selected statements include explicit references; 4 carry qualifiers and 0 use preferred rank.
Overview language is designed for orientation and should not be treated as a substitute for the evidence cited beneath it. The source lead contains qualifying language; that uncertainty should survive quotation, summary and reuse. Authority statements aid reconciliation but still require their own references, qualifiers and ranks to be checked.
How to read it
Use the entry as an orientation point, then follow its citations and revision history. Names, dates and institutional relationships should be checked against the original record.
- Subject orientation
- Search vocabulary
- Locating named sources
The closest primary source, responsible institution and strongest cited specialist reference.
Three-step research path
- Establish the record: confirm the title “Cochrane (organisation)”, its source revision and the description used here.
- Expand the search: follow Cochrane (organisation) primary sources, Cochrane (organisation) archive and Cochrane research across catalogues and specialist indexes.
- Test the account: compare the strongest cited source with the responsible institution’s current record and note any disagreement.
Questions for further research
- Which source most directly establishes the central claim about “Cochrane (organisation)”?
- Which cited source is closest to the event, object or claim?
- What terminology or title could unlock a more precise catalogue search?
Search terms from this dossier
This entry incorporates text from “Cochrane (organisation)” on English Wikipedia. Contributors are listed in the page history. Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License. Selected authority identifiers and statements are retrieved from Wikidata under CC0; their references and qualifiers remain part of the verification path.