To better understand the factors that challenge and promote the provisions of dissemination and implementation across the 64 CTSA programs.
Dissemination and implementation (D&I) science is critical to speeding the translation of evidence-based discovery into practice. The Institute of Medicine has reported a delay of up to 17 years between the generation of new medical discoveries and their translation into clinical practice.
Although D&I science is not a designated element of the CTSA Program, individual CTSAs have recognized the importance of D&I resources to the Clinical Translational Science Enterprise. Of the 45 CTSA institutions that participated in the 2010 CTSA Comparative Effectiveness Research Needs and Capacity Assessment Survey asking about the extent to which their institution needed to increase capacity and activity in D&I research, 54.5% reported "to some extent" and 43.2% reported "to a large extent." (CTSA Comparative Effectiveness Research Key Function Committee unpublished data)
Morrato et al conducted key informant interviews with CTSA institution representatives about their practices and opportunities for improving national comparative effectiveness research translation through D&I via CTSA institutions, and made three recommendations for bolstering D&I in these institutions – 1) create a national clearinghouse for D&I tools, 2) identify sources for best D&I practices, and 3) help networking existing D&I resources. To do so, identifying D&I services, resources, and scientific efforts across the CTSA Consortium, as well as better understanding factors that challenge and promote their provision across the 64 CTSA programs is largely unknown.
To fill this knowledge gap, the Dissemination and Implementation (D&I) Science Workgroup within the Collaboration Engagement Domain Task Force is identifying emerging, as well as well-developed resources, programs, training/workforce development, and scientific projects related to D&I science that are directly funded by CTSA programs. The Workgroup is also identifying whether CTSAs are supporting other D&I science activities or collaborating with other groups conducting D&I science activities within their institutions, even if they are not directly funding these activities. Here we report on a survey of the 64 CTSA PIs and Administrative Directors about their current D&I activities and their experience with providing these resources as part of their CTSA Programs.