[EQ] Exploring the impact of primary health care research

Exploring the impact of primary health care research

 

Final Report Stage 2 Primary Health Care Research Impact project

- PHC RIS Research team

Libby Kalucy, Eleanor Jackson Bowers, Ellen McIntyre, Ann-Louise Hordacre, Richard Reed,
Australia: Primary Health Care Research & Information Service - February 2009

 

Available online as PDF file [54p.] at:
 http://www.phcris.org.au/phplib/filedownload.php?file=/elib/lib/downloaded_files/publications/pdfs/phcris_pub_8108.pdf

 

“…..This report presents the results of a study conducted in 2007 by the Primary Health Care Research and Information Service, on seventeen diverse primary health care research projects funded by national competitive grants in Australia. The study aimed to examine, from the perspective of the chief investigators (CIs), the impact of these research projects and to explore how their projects

made an impact….”

 

“….Measuring the impact of primary health care research is an important but inexact science. While a research team has a great deal of influence on the outputs and immediate outcomes of their research project, the process of transferring research findings into practice and policy is convoluted and indirect. It can take many years for the findings of a research project to result in changes in health outcomes and health services. The longer the time, the more difficult it is to track impacts reliably and attribute them to the project. Changes to practice and policy are usually the result of evidence from a whole body of work, rather than from a single research project…”  Libby Kalucy

 

Contents

Preface

Executive summary

Recommendations to enhance impact

For Research Funders

For Researchers

For the Australian Government

For PHC RIS8

Introduction

Methodology

The sample

Questionnaire design

What difference does Primary Health Care research make?

Impacts Expected by Chief Investigators

Impacts achieved overall

Impacts achieved by domain

Research Transfer

University engagement with user groups

Enhanced relationships for research transfer

Knowledge Production

Research Targeting and Capacity Building

Informing policy and product development

Policy development

Organisational decision making

Use in Education

Informed Product Development

Use in practice guidelines or a systematic review

Health and Health Sector Benefits

Implemented in Practice and/or Service Delivery

Contributed to more equitable allocation of resources, better targeting of resources or improved access to services

Cost Savings

Improved Health Outcomes

Intellectual Property Gains

Broader Economic Benefits.

Improvements in population health

Other economic and social impacts

Summary

What are the pathways to impact?

Research Transfer

Knowledge Production

Research Targeting and Capacity Building

Informing Policy and Product Development

Involvement of policy makers in the research informed policy development

Involvement with multiple related projects enhanced policy impact

Chief Investigator’s participation on committees

Incorporation of the findings into education programs and professional guidelines

Facilitating organisations

Congruence with Government agendas enhanced policy impact

Champions

Health and the Health Sector

Inclusion in an education program

Raising awareness

Impact on health outcomes

Longer term impacts

Broader economic benefits

Theoretical models of pathways to impact

Linkage and exchange

Social embeddedness and social capital

Role of ideas

Communities of practice

Discussion

Dissemination

Limitations of the study

Further research on research impact

Conclusions

References

Appendix 1: Brief project descriptions

Appendix 2: Sample summary

Appendix 3: The questionnaire

Appendix 4: Impacts of research projects in relation to their intention

Appendix 5: Comparison of results with other studies of research impact using the Payback Framework

Appendix 6: Journals in which articles from study sample were published, with impact factors

 

 

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