In August, we hosted our 2nd Dissemination and Implementation (D&I) Science Workshop to help folks be successful with the dissemination and implementation aspects of their research proposals. It was held August 6th and 7th on UNMC’s campus. For our 2nd year running this workshop, we took the feedback from about 70 participants last year and determined how to improve this 2-day educational event. We updated materials covered in breakout sessions which included content for both beginners as well as more experienced D&I researchers. We also brought in new perspectives from experts at partner institutions like Kansas University Medical Center and even offered two-on-one consultations to give researchers the opportunity to discuss their proposal with D&I experts.
We were honored to host a number of returning keynote speakers including Dr. Russell Glasgow from UC Denver and Dr. Samantha Harden from Virginia Tech. New speakers included Dr. Ed Ellerbeck from KUMC who prompted attendees to consider how much evidence might be needed before submitting a D&I research proposal. Dr. Christie Befort, also from KUMC, gave some very useful context to D&I research by outlining a successful study she lead in the topic of obesity treatment in a rural primary care setting. She was also kind enough to invite a gentleman from her study who had served on the advisory board; he attested to the accomplishments that were implemented in the study.
UNMC’s own Drs. David Dzewaltowski, Paul Estabrooks, Fabio Almeida, and Tzeyu Michaud provided perspectives on different aspects of D&I science. David gave a talk on his own NIH-funded research grant which focuses on population health involving D&I science. David’s talk provided a practical example of a successful study that was further down the translational spectrum while Tzeyu discussed practical tools for assessing costs of D&I proposals. Paul delivered his usual warm welcome and discussed how to choose and apply different D&I theories to proposals. In the end, the workshop was a great opportunity to teach and learn about various elements of D&I science, both theoretical and practical, as well as a chance to network with like-minded researchers from different backgrounds and with different areas of expertise. We look forward to hosting again next year so stay tuned. Also, be sure to check out the list of presentations and resources relating to the workshop and D&I science.
