Supporting the use of research evidence in the Canadian health sector

Interventions to support evidence-informed decision making have increased in recent years, but they are often fragmented across different clinical, management and policy environments. Many of these efforts also place varying emphasis on supporting the use of research evidence, with some choosing to focus more on expert knowledge and/or media coverage and others focusing on supporting the use of actionable messages arising from high-quality, relevant and optimally packaged research evidence. In this paper, we profile five Canadian contributions--EvidenceUpdates, Rx for Change, Health-Evidence.ca, Health Systems Evidence and the McMaster Health Forum--that allow providers, managers and policy makers to efficiently find and use research evidence when they need it. These contributions are critical for supporting both local and global efforts to provide optimal and cost-effective care, improving the quality of care and strengthening health systems.