Developing educational competencies for dissemination and implementation research training programs: an exploratory analysis using card sorts.
BACKGROUND
With demand increasing for dissemination and implementation (D&I) training programs in the USA and other countries, more structured, competency-based, and tested curricula are needed to guide training programs. There are many benefits to the use of competencies in practice-based education such as the establishment of rigorous standards as well as providing an additional metrics for development and growth. As the first aim of a D&I training grant, an exploratory study was conducted to establish a new set of D&I competencies to guide training in D&I research.


METHODS
Based upon existing D&I training literature, the leadership team compiled an initial list of competencies. The research team then engaged 16 additional colleagues in the area of D&I science to provide suggestions to the initial list. The competency list was then additionally narrowed to 43 unique competencies following feedback elicited from these D&I researchers. Three hundred additional D&I researchers were then invited via email to complete a card sort in which the list of competencies were sorted into three categories of experience levels. Participants had previous first-hand experience with D&I or knowledge translation training programs in the past. Participants reported their self-identified D&I expertise level as well as the country in which their home institution is located. A mean score was calculated for each competency based on their experience level categorization. From these mean scores, beginner-, intermediate-, and advanced-level tertiles were created for the competencies.


RESULTS
The card sort request achieved a 41 % response rate (n = 124). The list of 43 competencies was organized into four broad domains and sorted based on their experience level score. Eleven competencies were classified into the "Beginner" category, 27 into "Intermediate," and 5 into "Advanced."


CONCLUSIONS
Education and training developers can use this competency list to formalize future trainings in D&I research, create more evidence-informed curricula, and enable overall capacity building and accompanying metrics in the field of D&I training and research.
Prevention Research Center in St. Louis, Washington University in St. Louis, One Brookings Dr., St. Louis, MO, 63130, USA. mpadek@wustl.edu.
Margaret
M
Padek
Division of Public Health Sciences and Alvin J. Siteman Cancer Center, School of Medicine, Washington University in St. Louis, 660 South Euclid Ave., St. Louis, MO, 63110, USA. colditzg@wustl.edu.
Graham
G
Colditz
School of Nursing, National Collaborating Centre for Methods and Tools, McMaster University, 175 Longwood Road South, Suite 210a, Hamilton, ON, L8P 0A1, Canada. dobbinsm@mcmaster.ca.
Maureen
M
Dobbins
Prevention Research Center in St. Louis, Washington University in St. Louis, One Brookings Dr., St. Louis, MO, 63130, USA. nik.koscielniak@gmail.com.
Nikolas
N
Koscielniak
George Warren Brown School of Social Work, Washington University in St. Louis, One Brookings Dr., St. Louis, MO, 63130, USA. ekp@wustl.edu.
Enola K
EK
Proctor
Center for Clinical Management Research, VA Ann Arbor Healthcare System, Ann Arbor, MI, USA. salesann@umich.edu.|Department of Learning Health Sciences, School of Medicine, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI, USA. salesann@umich.edu.
Anne E
AE
Sales
Prevention Research Center in St. Louis, Washington University in St. Louis, One Brookings Dr., St. Louis, MO, 63130, USA. rbrownson@wustl.edu.|Division of Public Health Sciences and Alvin J. Siteman Cancer Center, School of Medicine, Washington University in St. Louis, 660 South Euclid Ave., St. Louis, MO, 63110, USA. rbrownson@wustl.edu.
Ross C
RC
Brownson
D035843:Biomedical Research / Q000193:education*; D003162:Competency-Based Education; D003479:Curriculum; D004521:Educational Measurement; D006801:Humans; D033181:Information Dissemination; D016730:Program Development / Q000592:standards