Dissemination research in primary care: impacting the real world of the practitioner

Dissemination research in primary care should focus on getting information our and changing practice. Family physicians have a strong orientation toward prevention and are a trusted source of advice for patients but often lack an infrastructure to assist in prevention. Physicians provide such preventive care as: health enhancement, risk avoidance, risk reduction, early identification, and complication reduction. Within this framework important research questions are raised within five areas: the system of care, office organization, the professional, the patient, and education. Increasing the capacity for research should focus on the need for multi-disciplinary teams; longitudinal community-based cohort studies; inter-provincial studies; funded multiple-partner research programs; practitioners organized with a regional focus; and support for fellowships and investigators. The success of dissemination depends on its respect for the context and priorities of both practitioners and the public.