title: Supporting the use of research evidence in the Canadian health sector.
abstract: Interventions to support evidence-informed decision making have increased in recent years, but they are often fragmented across different clinical, management and policy environments. Many of these efforts also place varying emphasis on supporting the use of research evidence, with some choosing to focus more on expert knowledge and/or media coverage and others focusing on supporting the use of actionable messages arising from high-quality, relevant and optimally packaged research evidence. In this paper, we profile five Canadian contributions--EvidenceUpdates, Rx for Change, Health-Evidence.ca, Health Systems Evidence and the McMaster Health Forum--that allow providers, managers and policy makers to efficiently find and use research evidence when they need it. These contributions are critical for supporting both local and global efforts to provide optimal and cost-effective care, improving the quality of care and strengthening health systems.
authors.affiliation: Assistant director of the McMaster Health Forum, a member of the Centre for Health Economics and Policy Analysis, McMaster University, an assistant professor (part-time) in the Department of Clinical Epidemiology and Biostatistics, McMaster University and scientist, Health Policy and Knowledge Transfer and Exchange at the Ontario HIV Treatment Network.
authors.forename: Michael
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Wilson
authors.affiliation: Director of the McMaster Health Forum, associate director of the Centre for Health Economics and Policy Analysis, a professor in the Department of Clinical Epidemiology and Biostatistics, and associate member of the Department of Political Science, all at McMaster University.
authors.forename: John
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Lavis
authors.affiliation: Senior scientist, Clinical Epidemiology Program, Ottawa Hospital Research Institute, a full professor in the Department of Medicine, University of Ottawa and a Tier 1 Canada Research Chair in Health Knowledge Transfer and Uptake.
authors.forename: Jeremy
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Grimshaw
mesh_terms: D000288:Administrative Personnel; D002170:Canada; D003657:Decision Making; D003695:Delivery of Health Care / Q000458:organization & administration*; D019317:Evidence-Based Medicine; D006291:Health Policy; D006801:Humans; D057170:Translational Research, Biomedical