Article type
Year
Abstract
Background: The Ontario HIV Treatment Network (OHTN) is a non-profit collaborative network that aims to create rapid learning systems to improve the health and lives of people living with and at risk of HIV. A core service of the OHTN is its Rapid Response Service (RRS), an internal program that delivers synthesized evidence to support decision making, intervention planning, and adoption of best practices. The RRS produces and disseminates evidence in an accessible format to partners including community-based AIDS service organizations (ASOs), clinics, internal stakeholders, as well as the Ontario Ministry of Health, its agencies, and other stakeholders in the sector.
Objectives: To describe the scope of the OHTN’s RRS, including program methodology and its impact on HIV-related policy and practice.
Methods: Knowledge users can request a Rapid Response on the OTHN’s website. The RRS team then engages with the requester to understand needs and expectations, fine-tune the research question, and determine the best approach to the review. A search strategy is then developed by the RRS, and conducted in MEDLINE/PubMed, PsycInfo, and/or other relevant databases. Relevant research evidence is identified from the results and selected if the article fits within the scope of the research question. Evidence is drawn from systematic reviews, primary studies, and grey literature if necessary. The synthesized evidence is presented concisely, using accessible language.
Results: As of February 2020, 145 Rapid Responses have been produced and published on the OHTN’s website. Recent topics include HIV testing, substance use, sexually transmitted infections, and pre- and post-exposure prophylaxis. The number of rapid response downloads from the web-site increases each consecutive year, totaling 48,000 in 2019. Several of the Rapid Responses have contributed to policy changes at the provincial level in areas such as Narcan® nasal spray utilization, HIV testing intervals, and supervised injection sites for preventing and responding to drug overdose. In our evaluation of the RRS, knowledge users found the service to be valuable, contributing to programmatic decision-making, informing stakeholder organizations’ strategic directions, and policy development.
Conclusions: The RRS continues to be a valued resource for OHTN’s partners by synthesizing and disseminating research evidence in an accessible format. This ensures that research evidence is usable for people living with HIV, network stakeholders, decision makers, and other individuals working in the HIV sector in Ontario and beyond.
Patient or healthcare consumer involvement: The RRS aims to support HIV infrastructure in Ontario by providing synthesized evidence to policy makers and people living with HIV. Most Rapid Responses are requested by ASOs that represent consumers and people living with HIV who are actively involved in each stage of the Rapid Response development process. Policy and practice changes developed based on the Rapid Responses also directly benefit health care consumers.
Objectives: To describe the scope of the OHTN’s RRS, including program methodology and its impact on HIV-related policy and practice.
Methods: Knowledge users can request a Rapid Response on the OTHN’s website. The RRS team then engages with the requester to understand needs and expectations, fine-tune the research question, and determine the best approach to the review. A search strategy is then developed by the RRS, and conducted in MEDLINE/PubMed, PsycInfo, and/or other relevant databases. Relevant research evidence is identified from the results and selected if the article fits within the scope of the research question. Evidence is drawn from systematic reviews, primary studies, and grey literature if necessary. The synthesized evidence is presented concisely, using accessible language.
Results: As of February 2020, 145 Rapid Responses have been produced and published on the OHTN’s website. Recent topics include HIV testing, substance use, sexually transmitted infections, and pre- and post-exposure prophylaxis. The number of rapid response downloads from the web-site increases each consecutive year, totaling 48,000 in 2019. Several of the Rapid Responses have contributed to policy changes at the provincial level in areas such as Narcan® nasal spray utilization, HIV testing intervals, and supervised injection sites for preventing and responding to drug overdose. In our evaluation of the RRS, knowledge users found the service to be valuable, contributing to programmatic decision-making, informing stakeholder organizations’ strategic directions, and policy development.
Conclusions: The RRS continues to be a valued resource for OHTN’s partners by synthesizing and disseminating research evidence in an accessible format. This ensures that research evidence is usable for people living with HIV, network stakeholders, decision makers, and other individuals working in the HIV sector in Ontario and beyond.
Patient or healthcare consumer involvement: The RRS aims to support HIV infrastructure in Ontario by providing synthesized evidence to policy makers and people living with HIV. Most Rapid Responses are requested by ASOs that represent consumers and people living with HIV who are actively involved in each stage of the Rapid Response development process. Policy and practice changes developed based on the Rapid Responses also directly benefit health care consumers.