Promoting Knowledge Translation and Uptake in Children’s Rehabilitation Research
Promoting Knowledge Translation and Uptake in Children’s Rehabilitation Research:
Building on our Strengths
"Evidence itself is not sufficient, it must be communicated in ways that make it compelling"
Canadian Health Services Research Foundation (2002) p.4
In February 2004 the Ontario Rehabilitation Research Network (ORRN) hosted strategic planning sessions. One outcome of these consultations was the development of a group of professionals interested in advancing research dissemination in the field of childhood disability. This group is now invited to develop and present a proposal for implementing a strategy that will facilitate knowledge translation (KT).
Knowledge translation is defined by the Canadian Institutes of Health Research (CIHR) as “…the exchange, synthesis and ethically-sound application of researcher findings within a complex system of relationships among researchers and knowledge users.”
In this initiative, the focus is on the distribution and application portion of this cycle, as highlighted by the area circled above in the black dotted line. A four-part strategy has been implemented:
- Development of descriptions of research results that are edited by an expert in plain language writing;
- Publication of these descriptions on the CRRN website, with links to the websites of each of the contributors;
- Host consultation with clinicians, parents and other key stakeholders regarding project descriptions and solicit other mechanisms for knowledge translation in the future.
Research summaries will report on research across the rehabilitation disciplines on an array of topics such as motor impairment, quality of life, self-esteem, speech-language pathology and hearing.
Knowledge Translation Team Members (2004-2006)
Beverley J. Antle, Team Leader, The Hospital for Sick Children Research Institute
Melanie Barwick, The Community Health Services Resource Group, The Hospital for Sick Children
Teresa Carter, McMaster University
Marilyn Kertoy, University of Western Ontario
Mary Law, CanChild Centre for Childhood Disability Research
Helen Polatajko, University of Toronto
Rebecca Renwick, University of Toronto
Nancy Thomas-Stonell
