Reducing Risks for Mental Disorders Frontiers for Preventive Intervention Research (1994) / Chapter Skim
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11 THE KNOWLEDGE EXCHANGE PROCESS: FROM RESEARCH INTO PRACTICE
11 THE KNOWLEDGE EXCHANGE PROCESS: FROM RESEARCH INTO PRACTICE
Pages 415-436
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From page 415... ...
Researchers and community practitioners come to the knowledge exchange table with very different perspectives and value systems.
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From page 416... ...
When these questions cannot be answered from the results of completed field trials within the research cycle, or when practitioners have creative ideas for new interventions, they proceed to create their own prevention programs. Currently, this is being done at the federal, state, and local levels of government and by private foundations.
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From page 417... ...
The timing for the introduction of a prevention program must be right for a community; a program foisted onto a community, even by a local practitioner rather than a researcher, is unlikely to succeed. Ensuring the Readiness of the Host Organization If the host organization, such as a service agency, school, church, or city council, has had success in reaching out into its geographic community previously, has developed referral sources, and is respected within its community, it will have a better chance of success.
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From page 418... ...
Nevertheless, communities can be guided by the quality of evidence that is available from various prevention programs, some that have been tested in trials and others that have not. The following guidelines regarding a hierarchy of evidence have been adapted from work by the Canadian Task Force on the Periodic Health Examination and the U.S.
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From page 419... ...
· Personal inquiries to NIMH Preventive Intervention Research Center (PIRC) directors as well as researchers of numerous "illustrative programs" identified by the research institutes, service agencies, private foundations, and many other sources.
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Although the main emphasis was on preventive interventions, articles were included if they had direct implications for preventive interventions or provided a conceptual perspective that was "heuristically rich." The data bases used for the search included PsycINFO, MEDLINE, SOCIOFILE, ERIC, and AIDS at the National Library of Medicine. The search also included journals that were identified as specifically representing the field, volumes emanating from primary prevention conferences, and information derived directly from NIMH Prevention Research Branch (PRB)
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From page 421... ...
(This wide array of journals publishing prevention articles related to mental disorders from 1983 to 1991, compiled by using only the NIMH prevention bibliography as the source, can be found in Appendix E.) More than half of these 224 journals published only one prevention article.
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From page 422... ...
. These publications were mostly in the areas of theory, methodology, and risk, but some included data from preventive intervention research trials.
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From page 424... ...
The Center for Substance Abuse Prevention (CSAP, formerly OSAP) has one of the world's largest clearinghouses in its topic area, but little of its information deals with findings from rigorous preventive intervention research programs.
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Department of Health and Human Services P.O. Box 1182 Washington, DC 20013-1182 1~00-FYI-3366 Mental Health Policy Resource Center 1730 Rhode Island Avenue, NW Suite 308 Washington, DC 20036 202-775-8826 National Clearinghouse for Alcohol and Drug Information Center for Substance Abuse Prevention Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration U.S.
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From page 426... ...
Department of Health and Human Services 8201 Greensboro Drive, Suite 600 McLean, VA 22102 703-821-8955 National Mental Health Association National Prevention Coalition 1021 Prince Street Alexandria, VA 22314-2971 703-684-7722 National Prevention Evaluation Research Collection Center for Substance Abuse Prevention Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Aspen Systems Corporation 1600 Research Blvd MS-1C Rockville, MD 20850 301-251-5180 National Resource Center on Worksite Health Promotion 777 North Capitol Street, NE Suite 800 Washington, DC 20002 202-408-9320 ODPHP National Health Information Center Office of Disease Prevention and Health Promotion U.S.
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From page 427... ...
Currently, however, there is no formal federally funded mechanism for researchers to work directly with communities to develop preventive interventions for mental disorders. Sometimes this interaction does take place on an ad hoc basis.
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From page 428... ...
Local officials told us there was not unanimous agreement with the research program's broad health and social service orientation and intensity. They also did not agree with limiting services to the target population of first-time mother~particularly low-income, unmarried teen mothers even though these women were among the ones who benefited most from the experimental program.
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From page 429... ...
Thus quality assurance issues must be included in the documentation and evaluation of prevention programs that are installed in community settings. For example, it is essential that the goals and interventions are explicitly stated in written form; that documentation of the provision or delivery of the preventive interventions in the community fits the description of the interventions in the prevention program manual and provides a paper trail to audit the program's quality; and that all documentation be readily available for review.
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From page 430... ...
STRATEGIES FOR OVERCOMING BARRIERS TO THE KNOWLEDGE EXCHANGE PROCESS There are many barriers to the knowledge exchange process. Barriers to the adoption of innovative and effective prevention programs include those related to the prevention programs themselves; to the practitioners, clinicians, educators, and administrators involved in the service delivery; and to the host organizations.
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From page 431... ...
One of the keys to unlocking any potential opposition to engaging in preventive interventions is to provide relevant training to practitioners, educators, and other human service workers, equipping them with new knowledge, attitudes, and competences that will enable them to use the prevention programs with confidence. Thus, training the host of professional and paraprofessional interveners for prevention programs Is a major requirement in elevating the status of prevention in mental health.
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From page 432... ...
IMPROVING COMMUNITY ACCESS TO RESEARCH KNOWLEDGE As described above, several existing federal and state institutionssuch as SAMHSA's CSAP and CMHS, the Office of Disease Prevention and Health Promotion, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, and state mental health departments are currently serving as brokers to communities of information provided by prevention researchers on intervention programs related to mental disorders. However, these efforts have been scattered, without mandate, and "catch-as-catch-can." Perhaps the utilization of prevention programs in mental health can take cues from successful experiences in technology transfer found in other areas of our society.
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From page 433... ...
using the feedback gained from working with the communities to assist researchers in refining and improving their prevention innovations so they can be ever more effective, efficient, and practical. Of course, the community could go directly to the researchers and data sources themselves, but access to knowledge about effective preventive intervention research programs may be easier through a linkage center or broker.
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From page 434... ...
A coordinated plan for dissemination of the fruits of prevention research is needed, whether it be through existing institutions or newly created brokering or linkage centers. · In order for communities to learn how to obtain and make the best possible use of the research knowledge, they will need the help of a new breed of prevention program facilitator who can bridge research and practice.
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From page 435... ...
(1989) Prevention programming as organizational reinvention: From research to implementation.
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