title: Research funders' roles and perceived responsibilities in relation to the implementation of clinical research results: a multiple case study of Swedish research funders.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Implementation of clinical research results is challenging, yet the responsibility for implementation is seldom addressed. The process from research to the use of clinical research results in health care can be facilitated by research funders. In this paper, we report the roles of ten Swedish research funders in relation to implementation and their views on responsibilities in implementation.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Ten cases were studied and compared using semi-structured interviews. In addition, websites and key documents were reviewed. Eight facilitative roles for research funders in relation to the implementation of clinical research results were identified. Three of them were common for several funders: "Advocacy work," "Monitoring implementation outcomes," and "Dissemination of knowledge." Moreover, the research funders identified six different actors responsible for implementation, five of which belonged to the healthcare setting. Collective and organizational responsibilities were the most common forms of responsibilities among the identified actors responsible for implementation.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  The roles commonly identified by the Swedish funders, "Advocacy work," "Monitoring implementation outcomes," and "Dissemination of knowledge," seem feasible facilitative roles in relation to the implementation of clinical research results. However, many actors identified as responsible for implementation together with the fact that collective and organizational responsibilities were the most common forms of responsibilities entail a risk of implementation becoming no one's responsibility.
authors.affiliation: Department of Public Health and Caring Sciences, Uppsala University, Uppsala, Sweden. anders.brantnell@pubcare.uu.se.
authors.forename: Anders
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Brantnell
authors.affiliation: Department of Industrial Engineering and Management, Uppsala University, Uppsala, Sweden. enrico.baraldi@angstrom.uu.se.
authors.forename: Enrico
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Baraldi
authors.affiliation: Centre for Health Services and Nursing Research, KU Leuven, Leuven, Belgium. Theo.vanAchterberg@med.kuleuven.be.
authors.forename: Theo
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: van Achterberg
authors.affiliation: Department of Public Health and Caring Sciences, Uppsala University, Uppsala, Sweden. ulrika.winblad@pubcare.uu.se.
authors.forename: Ulrika
authors.initials: U
authors.lastname: Winblad
mesh_terms: D004059:Diffusion of Innovation; D006801:Humans; D007407:Interviews as Topic; D012109:Research Support as Topic / Q000458:organization & administration; D013548:Sweden; D057170:Translational Research, Biomedical / Q000379:methods*