Relevance for Public Health

Researchers developed this knowledge translation strategy to facilitate exchange between members of a small rural community in PEI and academic researchers representing multiple disciplines at the local university. This community engagement strategy can be broadly applied to building relationships between researchers and community members. Interactive engagement promotes the exchange of research evidence between these groups. The goal is to identify effective and evidence-informed strategies to address and potentially overcome health challenges facing communities.

Description

This paper outlines a process for exchanging information and transferring research between communities and researchers. The authors emphasize that community outreach efforts are important participatory steps in building relationships between these two groups. The resource explains how residents of a small town in Eastern Canada worked together with local researchers to develop solutions to their most pressing health issues. Through the process of interactive engagement, researchers helped the community to consider research evidence while developing a plan to address a priority health concern. The concept/process of interactive engagement is central to this knowledge translation strategy. It is an important component of the Institute for Work & Health’s generic model for transferring research knowledge.

The research team at the University of Prince Edward Island evaluated a series of six similar initiatives in small rural communities across the province as part of their Engaging the Community research project. Outcomes related to each of the individual initiatives varied. However, the team concluded that communities were more likely to be interested in research when it was particularly relevant to their current situation and when it addressed a pressing need, such as in the case of a perceived crisis.

The researchers established credibility by confirming the information that participants shared during focus group sessions (member checking).

Community stakeholders (advocacy committee) verified relevant key themes resulting from the focus group sessions.

This strategy would be useful for public health nurses, health promoters and researchers, specifically those wishing to advance the health of individuals living in small rural communities. The process directly involves individuals and groups who live in small rural communities, local public and community health providers and local planners and decision-makers.

Each focus group session lasted between 1.5 and 2 hours. The interactive engagement process outlined in this resource occurred over a two- to three-year time period.

A location for holding focus groups and community meetings is required throughout this process. To implement this strategy, the following skills and capacity are required: group facilitation; interviewing; qualitative data collection, analysis and interpretation; interview transcription; population health and health promotion.

1) Researchers conducted focus group sessions with members of the local community. They held separate sessions with three groups: parents, youth and local public and community health service providers. During each of these sessions, researchers asked participants about:

- Their previous knowledge about community health research

- The information needed to address their concerns and perceived challenges

- The priority health issues concerning the youth in the community

- The perceived strengths upon which to build strategies that address their concerns

- The perceived challenges to advancing strategies that address their concerns

2) The research team analysed the results from the focus groups and presented the major themes to the community advisory group (comprised of community members) for verification.

3) The team organized feedback sessions with members of the broader community to encourage dialogue/exchange.

4) The community selected a priority health issue.

5) Researchers provided evidence to support and help inform the community in making community-initiated strategic decisions to address their priority health issue.

Copyright © 2006 The Journal of Rural and Community Development

The following researchers at the University of Prince Edward Island developed this strategy: Kim A. Critchley, RN, PhD School of Nursing Vianne Timmons, PhD Vice President Academic Development Barbara Campbell, PhD School of Nursing Alexander McAuley, EdD Faculty of Education Jennifer Taylor, PhD Director of Family and Nutritional Sciences Fiona Watson, EdD Faculty of Education

The team developed this strategy based on a case study research approach and the underlying assumption that knowledge transfer is fundamentally a social process (Rogers, 1995).

Dr. Kim A. Critchley
School of Nursing, University of Prince Edward Island
108 Steel Building,
550 University Avenue
Charlottetown, PEI
Canada C1A 4P3
Phone: 902-566-0733
Fax: 902-566-0777
kcritchley@upei.ca

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Critchley, K., Timmons, V., Campbell, B., McAuley, A., Taylor, J., & Walton, F. (2006). Engaging the community: A case study in one rural community and the knowledge translation process. Journal of Rural and Community Development, 2(1), 75-85.

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Timmons, V. (2007). A final report on engaging the community: Knowledge translation as transformation in the lives of children in rural Prince Edward Island. University of Prince Edward Island. Retrieved from http://www.upei.ca/vpacademic/files/vpacademic/CIHR_FInal_Report_Knowledge_Translation.pdf

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Timmons, V., Critchley, K., Campbell, B., McAuley, A., Taylor, J., & Walton, F. (2007). Knowledge translation case study: A rural community collaborates with researchers to investigate health issues. Journal of Continuing Education in the Health Professions, 27(3), 183-187.

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