The 131st Annual Meeting (November 15-19, 2003) of APHA

Abstract #65612

Barbara L. Kass-Bartelmes, MPH, CHES¹, Barbara Elisse Najar, MPH¹, Katherine Crosson, MPH, CHES², Hazel K. Keimowitz, MA³, and Sandra K. Isaacson, RN¹. (1) Office of Health Care Information, Agency for Healthcare Research & Quality, 2101 E. Jefferson St., Suite 500, Rockville, MD 20852, 301-594-7076, bkass@ahrq.gov, (2) Center for Quality Improvement and Patient Safety, Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality, 6011 Executive Blvd., Suite 200, Room103, Rockville, MD 20852, (3) Office of Health Care Information, Division of Public Affairs, Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality, 2101 East Jefferson Street, Suite 501, Rockville, MD 20852

Health educators play a vital role in translating health research findings into actual practice in order to improve health outcomes. Translation efforts usually focus on informing policy or clinical practice through demonstration programs, medical guidelines, evidence-based practice reports, or issue briefs. Health educators bridge the gap between the public and the realms of policy and clinical practice by helping communities and individuals understand and apply the most recent knowledge about diseases, treatments, healthy lifestyles, and preventive care. However, little documentation and information exist regarding their efforts to incorporate research findings into their practice. Health educators provide programs in health departments, volunteer agencies, clinics, hospitals, work sites, and schools, and work as Certified Health Education Specialists, patient educators, social workers, nurses, home health care providers, teachers, and similar professions. Such diversity presents unique opportunities and obstacles for health educators. Health educators bring current knowledge into the classroom or community programs, but they are often limited by time and the funding required to make this knowledge usable. Findings from recent focus groups and interviews with health educators reveal how they view their roles in translating research into practice, methods they use to acquire and apply new knowledge, barriers they encounter to implementing new findings, and highlight how their methods and needs are similar and different from those of policymakers and clinicians. These results can help identify more effective approaches to translating current research into health education practice and improving health outcomes.

Learning Objectives:

At the end of the presentation, the participant will be able to:
• define various roles of health educators in translating research into practice;
• identify at least three obstacles or barriers health educators encounter; and
• describe one possible method to improve translation of research into health education practice.

Keywords: Health Education Strategies, Public Health Education

Presenting author's disclosure statement:
I do not have any significant financial interest/arrangement or affiliation with any organization/institution whose products or services are being discussed in this session.