Developing a Culture of Evidence-Based Practice
Dissemination is the distribution of intervention materials and information focused on a specific clinical practice audience or public health. The use of an effective approach to the dissemination of Evidence-Based Practice findings has been discovered to facilitate more widespread use of such information. The strategy used determines the likelihood of the audience receiving the information to understand the evidence presented and be in a position of factoring it in their health care decision making. The use of effective EBP dissemination strategies is therefore important as a concept that facilitates research translation hence the distribution of intervention materials and information to a targeted health organization or population in a manner that ensures adoption and integration of EBP to change practice patterns within specific healthcare settings. Effective strategies ensure that the presented evidence is persuasive, interpretable, and actionable. (Melnyk et al, 2018).
A preferred mode of dissemination I would likely use is the news media for example the traditional newspapers, radio, blogs, or television. The media normally sets the agenda and shapes public health issues by highlighting newsworthy topics at a given time. Information presented through the media reaches a large group of people from local, organizational up-to national or international level. Health care practitioners and policymakers easily access information on a clear, easy, and understandable manner that can provoke implementation. The media use of media also presents with its fair share of challenges that include the existence of gaps with regards to affecting policies, political and huge financial interests tied to the media. The information disseminated via the media must, therefore, gain attention by capturing human interest, address the seriousness of the problem, must be timely, and bares conflict or controversy concerning the national or state headline. (Melnyk, B. M et al, 2011)
At the organizational level, the quickest way I would employ to ensure effective dissemination of Evidence-based research findings would be the use of poster presentations. At departmental levels or within professional conferences, poster presentation attraction audiences and permit clarification and interaction of the evidence creation process and findings by the researcher, ensuring that presentation is creative and help build a collegiate relationship with other professionals who hold the same interest (Gallagher-Ford, L. et al, 2011). Posters allow educators to present evidence-based practice protocols developed by others to facilitate the development of staff or as a means of answering specific clinical questions. A poster that is properly designed gives a viewer a concise summary of the research purpose/problem, methodology, results, samples, and implications. The development of attractive posters can however prove to be very challenging and one poster can easily be masked by another poster not unless marked as “very important”.
The dissemination strategy I would least consider using would be the very famous peer-reviewed journal. Even though the use of journals has been prominent as means of disseminating scientific findings, it has always been so hard for most findings to make their way to the public lime-light or even get to be implemented by policymakers. Journal allows for dissemination but the dissemination is never effective since most EPB finds never reach the implementation phase (Newhouse, R. P. et al, 2007). Journals are normally implemented only once they passed through a systematic review process to ensure that there is a balanced view of the evidence. Academic detailing and inclusion of reminder systems can also be very important in ensuring the success of journals. In short, journals should take a more active approach than a passive approach.
