title: Integrating Science and Engineering to Implement Evidence-Based Practices in Health Care Settings.
abstract: Integrating two distinct and complementary paradigms, science and engineering, may produce more effective outcomes for the implementation of evidence-based practices in health care settings. Science formalizes and tests innovations, whereas engineering customizes and optimizes how the innovation is applied tailoring to accommodate local conditions. Together they may accelerate the creation of an evidence-based healthcare system that works effectively in specific health care settings. We give examples of applying engineering methods for better quality, more efficient, and safer implementation of clinical practices, medical devices, and health services systems. A specific example was applying systems engineering design that orchestrated people, process, data, decision-making, and communication through a technology application to implement evidence-based depression care among low-income patients with diabetes. We recommend that leading journals recognize the fundamental role of engineering in implementation research, to improve understanding of design elements that create a better fit between program elements and local context.
authors.affiliation: School and Social Work, Edward R. Roybal Institute on Aging, and Daniel J. Epstein Department of Industrial and Systems Engineering, University of Southern California, 669 West 34th Street, Montgomery Ross Fisher Building, Los Angeles, CA, 90089-0411, USA, shinyiwu@usc.edu.
authors.forename: Shinyi
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Wu
authors.forename: Naihua
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Duan
authors.forename: Jennifer P
authors.initials: JP
authors.lastname: Wisdom
authors.forename: Richard L
authors.initials: RL
authors.lastname: Kravitz
authors.forename: Richard R
authors.initials: RR
authors.lastname: Owen
authors.forename: J Greer
authors.initials: JG
authors.lastname: Sullivan
authors.forename: Albert W
authors.initials: AW
authors.lastname: Wu
authors.forename: Paul
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Di Capua
authors.forename: Kimberly Eaton
authors.initials: KE
authors.lastname: Hoagwood
mesh_terms: D004738:Engineering; D055317:Evidence-Based Practice; D006302:Health Services Research; D006801:Humans; D058436:Knowledge Management; D012586:Science; D018511:Systems Integration