title: Consulting as a strategy for knowledge transfer.
abstract: Academic researchers who work on health policy and health services are expected to transfer knowledge to decision makers. Decision makers often do not, however, regard academics' traditional ways of doing research and disseminating their findings as relevant or useful. This article argues that consulting can be a strategy for transferring knowledge between researchers and decision makers and is effective at promoting the "enlightenment" and "interactive" models of knowledge use. Based on three case studies, it develops a model of knowledge transfer-focused consulting that consists of six stages and four types of work. Finally, the article explores how knowledge is generated in consulting and identifies several classes of factors facilitating its use by decision makers.
authors.affiliation: Health Systems Research and Consulting Unit, Centre for Addiction and Mental Health, 33 Russell St., Toronto, ON M5S 2S1, Canada. nora_jacobson@camh.net
authors.forename: Nora
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Jacobson
authors.forename: Dale
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Butterill
authors.forename: Paula
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Goering
mesh_terms: D003625:Data Collection / Q000379:methods*; D003657:Decision Making; D006291:Health Policy; D006302:Health Services Research / Q000379:methods*; D006801:Humans; D019359:Knowledge; D009864:Ontario; D012017:Referral and Consultation