Knowledge Translation in Emergency Medicine: Establishing a Research Agenda

Society For Academic Emergency Medicine, Des Plaines IL

Investigators

Linked publications, trials & patents

Abstract

[unreadable] DESCRIPTION: (Provided by Applicant): Project Summary: An important component of the "Quality Chasm" identified by the Institute of Medicine (IOM) relates to the failure of health care environments, including Emergency Departments, to consistently deliver evidence-based diagnostic strategies and therapies to their patients. The IOM has further suggested that this failure to translate new knowledge into clinical practice and decision-making in healthcare is a major barrier preventing human benefit from advances in biomedical sciences. Knowledge Translation (KT) describes any activity or process that facilitates the exchange, synthesis and ethically-sound applications of high-quality research into effective clinical care, ultimately aimed at closing the evidence-practice gap. However, KT as a research discipline is still in its infancy and severely underdeveloped within the specialty of Emergency Medicine (EM) in a systematic way, despite being vitally relevant to emergency care in the 21st Century. For this reason, the journal "Academic Emergency Medicine" (AEM) has decided to convene a Consensus Conference (CC) to develop KT in EM. The broad, long-term overall objective of this International KT CC is to stimulate the development of a research agenda aimed at identifying the most optimal routes for bridging the evidence-to-practice gap (i.e. through the consistent and reliable implementation of evidence-based interventions into clinical practice) within the specialty of EM. Specific objectives of the KT CC include: 1) develop a framework for building an EM KT Consortium that will initiate multicentred projects and foster collaboration and synergy in KT initiatives and KT research; 2) develop a consensus statement that will establish priorities and highlight opportunities in EM KT research; and 3) develop recommendations directed at multiple stakeholders within healthcare organizations and regulatory agencies that will advance the EM agenda of consistent uptake through KT. This KT CC will take place in Chicago, Illinois on May 15, 2007. As the lead U.S. agency for research on health care quality, costs, outcomes and patient safety, AHRQ's Translating Research In Practice (TRIP) I and II initiatives are aimed at implementing evidence-based tools and information in diverse health care settings. The CC's conceptual framework will consist of addressing 13 key themes through consensus-building workshops and its proceedings (research agenda and recommendations) will appear in a dedicated themed issue of AEM in November 2007. Project Summary/Abstract Relevance: Implementing evidence-based medical care remains one of the greatest challenges facing emergency departments both in the U.S. and internationally. The lack of knowledge translation applications in the specialty of Emergency Medicine (EM) has resulted in extremely poor efforts on the part of the emergency medical community to translate the enormous volume of high quality research-based medical knowledge into clinical practice, thereby creating a significant gap between current best evidence and evidence-based practice. To help meet this challenge, the field of EM is convening this important Knowledge Translation Consensus Conference that will set an agenda designed to close this gap between research and practice, thereby improving emergency patient care. [unreadable] [unreadable] [unreadable]