Unlocking the Power of Prevention: The Crucial Role of Implementation research for policy

Improved public health outcomes can only be achieved when prevention approaches are not just developed but effectively put into action. The key lies in bridging the gap between research and reality through well-executed implementation.

We know that the potential benefits of prevention efforts are often impeded by implementation challenges, for example, a lack of resources, inadequate delivery infrastructure, and limited workforce capacity.

We are working to tease out the policy-relevant implications of research from The Australian Prevention Partnership Centre and several prevention focused NHMRC Centres of Research through the Collaboration for Enhanced Research Impact (CERI).

Our goal is to collate and communicate the impactful work conducted by the Prevention Centre and CERI members in a way that directly speaks to the implementation evidence needs and priorities of prevention policy agencies across Australia.

This work is informed by a novel process involving online dialogues with key policy and practice stakeholders to identify common evidence needs and challenges. This information guides the review questions and knowledge synthesis that incorporates work conducted nationally by members of CERI.

This process helps to ensure the findings are directly relevant to the issues and challenges identified by policy and practice partners in their work.

We look forward to sharing the results with you soon!

Read more about knowledge syntheses for chronic disease prevention on The Australian Prevention Centre Website. 

Publication:

Combining public health evidence, policy experience and communications expertise to inform preventive health: reflections on a novel method of knowledge synthesis. Health Research Policy and Systems 21, 112 (2023). https://doi.org/10.1186/s12961-023-01062-x