Community-Academic Workshop on Translating Research Findings into Policy Briefs for Broader Dissemination.

Abstract

Objectives: Health equity research often aims to promote policy, program, or system change; yet, findings are seldom translated or disseminated into lay and policy-relevant language for communities, practitioners, decision-makers, and policymakers. Policy briefs enable researchers to summarize and communicate their findings to policymakers and organizations, promoting policy, practice, and program change.

Methods: To address the evidence-policy gap, which is the lack of translation from research findings to policy changes, the California Policy Lab and the UCLA Community Engagement and Research Program delivered a 2-hour interactive policy brief workshop to researchers, research staff, and community-based organizations. A community-government-academic-partnered research report was evaluated and reviewed as a case example, revising results and dissemination into a policy brief.

Results: A diverse community, government, and academic turnout (N=215 participants) and postworkshop survey results demonstrate a broad interest in the topic and the pressing need for more training on translating research into policy impact, particularly within multisector partnerships working toward health equity, where multimedia dissemination is critical for translating results for timely policy, program, or practice impact. A workshop curriculum, handout, and recording are provided to promote similar training in other settings.

Conclusion: To promote more effective evidence-based policy and practice linkages, researchers and partners need more training on policy-relevant research design and related dissemination.