With a membership that spans health services researchers, health policymakers and analysts, industry professionals, public health practitioners, and health care providers, AcademyHealth is uniquely positioned to bridge the gaps between research, policy, and practice. The Translation and Dissemination Institute does this work in a number of ways, including:
- Listening to policymakers, delivery system leaders, and other health care stakeholders to help researchers identify pressing research needs.
- Learning from a variety of disciplines about how to advance the art and science of how we translate and disseminate research findings for policy and practice.
- Innovating by testing new approaches and tools, including processes for quickly but rigorously synthesizing evidence for policymakers and other research users.
Translation and Communications Interest Group
The Translation and Communications Interest Group is comprised of researchers, policymakers, advocates, journalists, consumers, practitioners, and others interested in improving the quality of health care. The group focuses on practical ways to understand, translate, and communicate research findings to meet the needs of various audiences, including improving the quality of information that informs health policy development.
Advisory Committee
The Institutes's activities are guided by an external Advisory Committee whose members bring expertise from a wide range of disciplines relevant to research translation, dissemination, and implementation.
Funders
Past Events
9th Annual Conference on the Science of Dissemination and Implementation in Health
December 14-15, 2016
Co-hosted by the National Institutes of Health and AcademyHealth, the 9th Annual Conference aims to grow the research base by bridging the gap between evidence, practice, and policy in health and medicine. The abstract solicitation and conference structure have been designed to focus our thinking and discussion on the highest priorities for dissemination and implementation science now and in the future to help optimize health and health care in the U.S. and elsewhere.
Presenting Research in Compelling Ways A Student Competition
June 2016
In this competition held during the 2016 Annual Research Meeting (ARM) student competitors presented a health services research project or an analysis of a body of rigorous evidence that addressed a current issue in health policy or health care research. In their presentations, students used tools such as personal narrative, relevant audio or visual materials, or other creative approaches to presenting research to interested but perhaps non-technical audiences.
Innovation in Safety Net Hospitals: What’s the Role of Research Evidence?
April 11, 2016
With support from Kaiser Permanente, AcademyHealth’s Translation and Dissemination Institute undertook a series of activities to better understand safety net providers’ evidence needs and how the health services research community can be a better partner in helping fill important knowledge gaps. This Google Hangout features findings from a series of issue briefs that explored innovations in care at three safety net hospitals and the experiences of leadership in using research and other evidence to help inform their work.
Health Services Unplugged
July 2015
Dr. Mebane joined AcademyHealth as an Innovator-in-Residence in April 2015. In this role, she produced a podcast series, Health Services Unplugged, which links health services research studies to timely issues facing vulnerable or underserved populations.
Ernest Moy Webinar Series:
Part I: Introduction to Health Systems Simulation for Policy
October 23, 2014
This free webinar was the first in a two-part introductory series for health services researchers at all stages of their careers, public and population health professionals, and those from the policy arena interested in learning about simulation models and how to use them.
Part II: Effective Use of Simulation to Guide Health Policy
November 14, 2014
This free webinar built upon the introduction to simulation presented in the first webinar and highlighted the value of using models to enhance decision-making in health policy and public health. Speakers from both health policy and simulation backgrounds discussed experiences and lessons learned from using and communicating about models.
Webinar Series on Twitter:
Why Tweet? Building the Skills to Engage New Audiences and Promote Your Work
December 03, 2014
‘Why Tweet?’ was the first in a three-part webinar series from the EDM Forum in collaboration with the AcademyHealth Translation and Dissemination Institute. In this session, new users learned the basics of Twitter as well as some tips, tricks, and guidance on strategy to achieve Twitter’s maximum potential.
The Social Network: Using Twitter to Translate and Disseminate Evidence
January 15, 2015
This webinar, the second in a series sponsored by the EDM Forum in collaboration with the AcademyHealth Translation and Dissemination Institute, discussed strategies for moving knowledge into action through Twitter, based on feedback from researchers and media who are active in the space.
Rapid Cycle Evaluation of Health System Innovation
November 26, 2016
In this webinar, Dr. Marsha Gold discussed rapid cycle evaluation, with a special focus on methodology and particular issues common to this type of research. This webinar will be of interest for individuals working in, or affiliated with organizations that have an interest in, how to apply research techniques to evaluate and help shape innovations in health care and public health to improve system performance in ways that achieve improved population health.
Pilots & Programs
Rapid Evidence Reviews Project
The Rapid Evidence Reviews Project is piloting innovative approaches to quickly, but rigorously identifying and communicating evidence to inform public and private decision-making. The Institute is testing these approaches by applying them to questions relevant to building a Culture of Health, the current focus of the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, the project’s funder.
Evidence Roadmaps
The Institute’s Evidence Roadmaps provide a selected minimal set of key resources on a given topic, including research studies, grey literature, and systematic reviews. Some take a closer look at evidence needs identified in the Listening Project reports. The Roadmaps aim to help policy analysts and other research users better understand whether a perceived research gap represents an actual lack of evidence or failure of existing evidence to reach the policy arena, that is, a failure of adequate translation and dissemination.