Implementation researchers wanted for new science

If implementation research is to take off as a new science, it’s going to need a whole new generation of implementation researchers.

What training do those researchers need? “A lot,” judging by a think-tank session at the annual National Institute of Health conference on the Science of Dissemination and Implementation. Called ‘Training the next generation of implementation researchers, ’ it was chaired by Enola Proctor from Washington University.

The challenges are daunting. The theory of implementation science is debated and the methods of investigation are underdeveloped. There is only an emergent specialist literature, but a vast hinterland of relevant research from multiple disciplines – management, health, anthropology, organizational psychology and so on. Didactic and experiential learning are required. The breadth of critical and core competencies wanted is considerable.

Undaunted, contributors made some practical suggestions, including infiltrating existing courses where possible and providing a “total immersion” experience in the form of, say, a summer school program. The discussion was mainly US-focused, prompting the question of what we are already doing, or might do, on the UK side of the Atlantic.