We can close the evidence-practice gap.
The need for Dissemination & Implementation (D&I) Science is clear. A rich body of research knowledge is not moving into the hands of practitioners and policy makers as quickly and efficiently as needed.
On average, it takes 17 years for just 14% of original research to make its way to practice. In fact, for various reasons, fully 80% of medical research dollars do not make a public health impact.
How Dissemination & Implementation Helps
This considerable evidence-practice gap is due to the lack of relevance of evidence, as well as the time and capacity needed for public health professionals to adapt and implement new interventions.
That is where a focus on Dissemination & Implementation becomes so valuable.
D&I is a growing research field that seeks to improve how evidence-based interventions are successfully adopted, implemented, and maintained in health care delivery and community settings.
Learn about the origins of D&I.
Join the Effort
Change begins, in part, with individual researchers’ decisions about how they plan and design their studies.
Dissemination & Implementation can empower you to:
- Enhance the relevance and impactfulness of your research career.
- Interface closely with healthcare leaders and staff as partners, breaking down the research-practice divide in order to achieve the ultimate goal: to increase the public health impact of evidence-based innovation.
- Integrate methodologies into clinical trial designs and speed the development of evidence-based interventions that have demonstrable public health impact.
Ways to plug in at WashU
Our researchers have created some of the seminal contributions to the field of Dissemination & Implementation — and are excited to help more researchers multiply their impact.