SPHERE-in-the-know

The new SPHERE – In the Know platform was officially launched this month. This resource is an important vehicle to promote knowledge translation, within and beyond the Sydney Partnership for Health Education Research and Enterprise, or SPHERE. For those who are unfamiliar with SPHERE – it’s a nationally-funded Advanced Health Research and Translation Centre that brings together 14 leading organisations to innovatively change the future of healthcare.

Within SPHERE are 16 Clinical Academic Groups – or CAGs – each of which focus on a particular health interest. They are supported by Strategic Platforms, including the Knowledge Translation Strategic Platform, which is led by Katherine Boydell, Professor of Mental Health at the Black Dog Institute and A/Prof Ann Dadich, University of Western Sydney, and supported by two research assistants, artists-in-residence and knowledge translation Ambassadors. 

The website was developed by a group of interns from the Bachelor of Creative Intelligence and Innovation (BCII) Program at UTS, Sydney. They spent time in the problem or challenge space – which was focused on how to best meet the knowledge translation needs of SPHERE clinicians, researchers, policy makers and health care consumers.

In creating the website, the interns reviewed the literature, interviewed knowledge translation ambassadors and created a needs survey. Based on this data, they proposed that an engaging website would best meet the identified needs and set about creating the resource in consultation with the wider knowledge translation platform.

The website SPHERE-In-the-Know offers an opportunity to learn about the theory and practice of knowledge translation. There users can explore a wide range of knowledge translation methods, and discover examples of knowledge translation in action.

A SPHERE map allows the viewer to discover existing connections and projects occurring within and amongst all SPHERE Clinical Academic Groups. There are a series downloadable fact sheets and toolkits. In response to great demand is a section that focuses on grant advice – in particular, how to include knowledge translation activities in grant writing.

The website offers opportunities to get creative with Methods Cards – to help teams better understand knowledge translation; Conversation Starters – to spark conversations about knowledge translation; and Consideration Questions – to begin promoting, learning and teaching knowledge translation.

This resource represents a direct response to the needs and preferences of SPHERE members – including consumers and carers – who have collectively indicated how the Knowledge Translation Strategic Platform can support their efforts to ultimately improve healthcare, now and in the future.

Guest post by Katherine Boydell, Professor of Mental Health at the Black Dog Institute and co-lead of the SPHERE Knowledge Translation Strategic Platform. Visit the SPHERE – In the Know platform