Clinical Epidemiology in China series. Paper 2: Promoting GRADE at the national level: The experience from China

Objective: To share the experience of promoting GRADE in China. Study Design and Setting: We designed the study and collected data on the following three aspects of the GRADE in China: the key activities related to GRADE, the main achievements of the GRADE, and potential challenges and future opportunities. Results: Three GRADE centres have been established in China since 2011. Seventeen articles of the GRADE working group have been translated and published in Chinese, and 31 articles have been written by Chinese scientists in Chinese to introduce and interpret the GRADE approach so far. More than 50 GRADE workshops and meetings have been held by GRADE centres in China, covering two-thirds of all provinces and autonomous regions of China. The percentages of societies from the Chinese Medical Association (CMA) and the Chinese Medical Doctor Association (CMDA) that used the GRADE system to develop guidelines were 30% and 18%, respectively. Conclusion: Over the past decade, China has made progress in promoting the GRADE system and Chinese GRADE centres have made a significant contribution.