Article type
Year
Abstract
Background: To achieve evidence-informed decision making (EIDM) in public health requires both organizational support and commitment alongside the development of knowledge, skill and capacity among individual practitioners. One promising strategy for EIDM is knowledge brokering.
Objectives:
1. Assist health departments in identifying and developing organizational capacity for EIDM.
2. Build individual capacity for EIDM among four to six public health professionals at five health departments.
Methods: The senior management team of each participating health department participated in a three-hour focus group to assess organizational capacity for EIDM. During the assessment, priorities for supporting EIDM at the organizational level were identified and strategies were developed to address these priorities. The senior management teams identified six individuals to participate in a 16-month knowledge broker mentoring program where participants receive intense training in all steps in the EIDM process. The program consists of face-to-face interactive workshops at McMaster University (10 days in total), monthly webinars, and biweekly follow-up teleconferences with an expert in EIDM. Individual knowledge and skill is being evaluated at baseline and will be evaluated again at completion of the program along with another organizational assessment.
Results: Initial feedback from the first face-to-face workshop was overwhelmingly positive. All organizations are developing strategies to integrate EIDM into routine decision making. Each health department has allocated resources to cover the costs of their staff to attend the workshops, as well as the cost to deliver the workshops, and has committed two hours per week per staff member to continue developing their EIDM knowledge and skills throughout the program.
Conclusions: This program will address an priority area in public health by assisting health departments to develop and support evidence-informed decision making throughout the organization.
Objectives:
1. Assist health departments in identifying and developing organizational capacity for EIDM.
2. Build individual capacity for EIDM among four to six public health professionals at five health departments.
Methods: The senior management team of each participating health department participated in a three-hour focus group to assess organizational capacity for EIDM. During the assessment, priorities for supporting EIDM at the organizational level were identified and strategies were developed to address these priorities. The senior management teams identified six individuals to participate in a 16-month knowledge broker mentoring program where participants receive intense training in all steps in the EIDM process. The program consists of face-to-face interactive workshops at McMaster University (10 days in total), monthly webinars, and biweekly follow-up teleconferences with an expert in EIDM. Individual knowledge and skill is being evaluated at baseline and will be evaluated again at completion of the program along with another organizational assessment.
Results: Initial feedback from the first face-to-face workshop was overwhelmingly positive. All organizations are developing strategies to integrate EIDM into routine decision making. Each health department has allocated resources to cover the costs of their staff to attend the workshops, as well as the cost to deliver the workshops, and has committed two hours per week per staff member to continue developing their EIDM knowledge and skills throughout the program.
Conclusions: This program will address an priority area in public health by assisting health departments to develop and support evidence-informed decision making throughout the organization.