During the inaugural Improvement Science Summit, Dr. Carolyn Clancy* spoke of the challenges that face improvement science, particularly the difficulty of integrating evidence into clinical practice. In her keynote address Dr. Clancy stated that “research will not yield improvement unless research results are adopted and hardwired into practice.’’ Three years later we still recognize the challenge to test effective ways to spread and implement improvement strategies.
The ISRN’s response to this challenge has included diverse leadership representing various stakeholders, a set of national research priorities, a mission to advance the scientific foundation for quality improvement, and a research infrastructure to support multi-site collaboration on national improvement studies. These features of the ISRN narrow the knowing-doing gap and point to effective improvement strategies that increase healthcare quality and patient safety. This aligns with Dr. Clancy’s recommendations to “develop clear boundaries, priorities, vocabularies, theories, methods, and tools1” in order to package knowledge for rapid uptake.
As the field of improvement science and the ISRN continue to evolve, resources to support this new field of research are needed. National research collaboratives, research methods conferences, and funding are all critical elements in discovering solutions.
Share your thoughts by commenting on the blog:
- What are your thoughts on the current status of resources for studying improvement, dissemination and implementation?
- What actions will produce enough scientists and clinicians working in the field?
- Are we doing enough to meet the challenge to span the knowing-doing gap?
* Carolyn Clancy, MD, Director, Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality
1Improvement Science Research Network. (2010). Expert Perspectives, The Challenges Ahead. Network News, Vol.1 (2), p1. https://iims.uthscsa.edu/isrn/wp-content/uploads/sites/27/2024/10/ISRN_Newsletter_Oct_2010.pdf