Knowledge Broker

Moving Motor Growth Research into Clinical Practice: Do Knowledge Brokers (KBs) Make a Difference? ("KB Study")

Research has shown that traditional methods of knowledge translation for rehabilitation professionals such as passive dissemination, workshops and peer-reviewed journal articles have not been successful in changing clinical practice. The purpose of this study is to evaluate the effectiveness of physical therapists, acting as Knowledge Brokers (KBs) within their own clinical facility to facilitate the clinical use of evidence-based measures of gross motor function for children with cerebral palsy. This study is being carried out in pediatric rehabilitation settings in Ontario, Alberta and British Columbia. The specific content being "translated" in this study concerns consistent use of evidence-based materials by physical therapists, however, the lessons learned in this work will generalize across settings, content areas and knowledge broker roles.

Research Team

This study is being led by researchers at McMaster University's CanChild Centre for Childhood Disability Research (Dianne Russell, Peter Rosenbaum, Doreen Bartlett, Stephen Walter, Steven Hanna), the University of Alberta (Johanna Darrah) and the University of British Columbia (Lori Roxborough). Consultants to the project include Dianne Cameron (BC Centre for Ability, Vancouver, British Columbia), Robert Palisano (Drexel University, Philadelphia) and Marjolijn Ketelaar (Utrecht University, The Netherlands).

For more information, contact Lisa Rivard, Research Coordinator

Project Updates

Presentations

Russell, D, Rivard, L, Walter, S, Roxborough, L, Cameron, D, Rosenbaum, P, Bartlett, D, Darrah, J, & Hanna, S. Moving cerebral palsy research into practice: Do knowledge brokers make a difference? Developmental Medicine and Child Neurology, 51 (Suppl. 2), 76.

Cameron, D, Russell, D, Rivard, L, Darrah,J.& Palisano, R. Perspectives from Administrators: Do Knowledge Brokers Make a Difference? Conference presentation at the International Cerebral Palsy Conference, Sydney, Australia. February, 2009.

Russell, D, Ketelaar, M, Gorter, JW, Rosenbaum, P, Cameron, D, Darrah, J, Roxborough, L. Knowledge Brokers: What are they and how can they help move cerebral palsy research into clinical practice? Seminar presented at the International Cerebral Palsy Conference, Sydney, Australia. February, 2009.

Russell, D, Rivard, L, Cameron, D, Walter, S, Rosenbaum, P, Bartlett, D, Roxborough, L, Darrah, J, & Hanna, S. Can Knowledge Brokers Help Move Evidence into Clinical Practice? Poster presented at the Ontario Association of Children's Rehabilitation Services (OACRS) Annual Meeting, Waterloo, Ontario, 2008.

Cameron, D, Russell, D, Rivard, L, Darrah,J, & Palisano, R. Perspectives from Administrators: Do Knowledge Brokers Make a Difference? Poster presented at the Ontario Association of Children's Rehabilitation Services (OACRS) Annual meeting, Waterloo, Ontario, 2008.

Russell, D, Roxborough, L, Rivard, L. & Morris, C. Use of Outcome Measures in Pediatric Clinical Practice: Therapist Identified Barriers and Facilitators. Paper presented at the European Academy for Childhood Disability, Groningen, Netherlands, June, 2007.

Russell, D., Roxborough, L., Rivard, L., & Morris, C. Use of Outcome Measures in Pediatric Clinical Practice: Therapist Identified Barriers and Facilitators. Poster presented at the Ontario Association of Children's Rehabilitation Services (OACRS) Annual Meeting, Waterloo, Ontario, 2007.

Russell, D., Gorter, J.W., Rosenbaum, P., Ketelaar, M., Morris, C., Knowledge Translation: Experiences of Moving Research into Clinical Practice. Workshop presented at the European Academy for Childhood Disability, Groningen, Netherlands, June, 2007.

Publications

Russell, DJ, Rivard, LM, Walter, SD, Rosenbaum, PL, Roxborough, L., Cameron, D., Bartlett, DJ, Darrah, J., Hanna, SE, & Avery, LM. (2010) Using knowledge brokers to facilitate the uptake of pediatric measurement tools into clinical practice: a before-after intervention study. Implementation Science 2010, 5:92 http://www.implementationscience.com/content/5/1/92.

Rivard, LM, Russell, DJ, Roxborough, L., Ketelaar, M., Bartlett, D., & Rosenbaum, P. (2010) Promoting the use of measurement tools in practice: a mixed methods study of the activities and experiences of physical therapist Knowledge Brokers (KBs). Physical Therapy, 90:1580-1590.

Cameron, D., Russell, DJ, Rivard, L., Darrah, J. & Palisano, R. Knowledge brokering in children's rehabilitation organizations: Perspectives from Administrators. Journal of Continuing Education in the Health Professions, 31(1):28-33.

Resources

Reports

Knowledge Brokering in Pediatric Rehabilitation. (2012) Guide to Knowledge Translation Planning at CIHR: Integrated and End-of-Grant Approaches. Canadian Institutes of Health Research (http://www.cihr-irsc.gc.ca/e/45321.html#a10.3)

Russell, D., Teplicky, R., Cameron, D., Roxborough, L., Rosenbaum, P., Gorter, J. W., et al. (2010). Knowledge Brokering: Report to CEOs

Russell, D., Teplicky, R., Rosenbaum, P., Gorter, J. W., Cameron, D., Roxborough, L., et al. (2010). Knowledge Brokers: A Model to Support Evidence-Based Changes in Practice

Roxborough, L., Rivard, L., Russell, D. (2009). Keeping Current in Knowledge Brokering in Health Care.

Russell, D., Rivard, L., Rosenbaum, P., Hanna, S., Roxborough, L., Cameron, D., Bartlett, D., Darrah, J., Gorter, JW., & Walter, S. & Teplicky, R. (2010). Knowledge Brokering in Pediatric Rehabilitation: Putting Research Results into Action. Knowledge to Action: An end of grant knowledge translation casebook. Canadian Institutes of Health Research

Russell, D., Rivard, L., Walter, S., Rosenbaum, P., Bartlett, D., Cameron, D., et al. (2009). Knowledge Broker Study Report (Version 2, August 2009).