Partnerships for knowledge exchange in health services research, policy and practice

Within the health services research community there is a growing strength of feeling that ongoing partnerships between researchers and decision-makers are critically important to effective transfer and exchange of knowledge generated from health services research. A body of literature is emerging around this idea that favours a particular model of partnership based on decision-maker involvement in research. This model is also gaining favour among health research funding bodies internationally. We argue that it is premature for the health services community to privilege any particular model of partnership between researchers and decision-makers. Rather a diversity of models should be conceptualized, explored in theory and practice, and evaluated. We identify seven dimensions that could be used to describe and differentiate models of partnerships for knowledge exchange and illustrate how these dimensions could be applied to analysing partnerships, using three case studies from recent and ongoing health services research partnerships in Australia.