Nationwide Environmental Scan of Knowledge Brokers Training

Area of Science:

• Health Services Research
• Knowledge Translation
• Rehabilitation Science

Background:

• Knowledge brokers (KBs) are crucial for implementing best practice guidelines in rehabilitation.
• Existing educational training opportunities (ETOs) for KBs lack characterization and content analysis.
• Understanding ETOs is essential to ensure they align with required KB competencies.

Purpose of the Study:

• To describe available ETOs for rehabilitation professionals in Canada.
• To evaluate if these ETOs meet the competencies expected for KB roles.

Main Methods:

• A Canada-wide environmental scan identified ETOs through online searches, phone calls, and snowball sampling.
• ETOs targeting KB competencies and roles in rehabilitation were included.
• Content was mapped to KB competencies and five core roles: information manager, linking agent, capacity builder, facilitator, and evaluator.

Main Results:

• 51 ETOs from British Columbia, Ontario, and Quebec were analyzed.
• 76% of ETOs provided research skills, 55% knowledge brokering skills, and 53% implementation science knowledge.
• Over 60% of ETOs supported the capacity builder role, and 39% supported the evaluator role.

Conclusions:

• Current ETOs emphasize research and knowledge brokering skills, particularly for capacity builder and evaluator roles.
• There is a need for more comprehensive educational training that addresses all KB roles and competencies.
• Enhanced ETOs are required to fully prepare KBs for effective practice in rehabilitation settings.