This study, funded by the Health Research Board Knowledge Translation Award (HRB-KTA), builds on the work of the CUSTOMISE project. In the CUSTOMISE project, we are looking at ways to support the implementation of DAFNE, a patient education programme for people Type 1 Diabetes delivered by health professionals in hospitals.  

With this KTA Award, we will bring together health professionals delivering DAFNE, as well as researchers, policymakers and patients with diabetes, at a knowledge exchange seminar (that is- an event where everyone in attendance exchanges thoughts, ideas and knowledge such as research results or lived experience). This will give an opportunity for the research team to present their findings. The health professionals and patients with diabetes will be invited to share their experience of delivering and taking part in this programme. The event will also encourage engagement with policymakers and other stakeholders. For the second part of the project, we plan to design videos about implementation science and about our work on DAFNE. Our aim is to strengthen knowledge of and interest in implementation science, and to share current results from the CUSTOMISE project. The Principal Investigator for this project is Dr Sheena McHugh, and the Research Assistant is Julia Banasiak.  

Why are we doing this research?

Our researchers have been working with DAFNE teams across Ireland to identify and prioritise barriers to implementation in their locality and select strategies (solutions) to address those challenges. This process is known as tailoring.  

With the Knowledge Translation Award from the HRB, our first aim is to share what we have learned about barriers to implementation and strategies with health professionals from DAFNE centres across the country. 

The second aim is to increase awareness of implementation science for professionals and the general public alike. Implementation science is a branch of science which looks at ways to allow research-backed interventions (also known as evidence- based interventions or EBIs) to be put in place effectively. Research suggests that it is beneficial to involve people delivering and taking part in programmes whose implementation is studied, in the implementation process.  

Currently, there are very few engaging and/or practical resources that teach researchers and the public about implementation science, and the tailoring process. We would like to change this by creating video resources. Videos are accessible and engaging tools that will allow us to easily share information about implementation science.  

What is involved?

In this project we will:  

1. Host a one-day knowledge exchange seminar for DAFNE teams (healthcare professionals), people with type 1 diabetes, policymakers and researchers. 
    

1. Develop animations and real-world videos explaining basic concepts around implementation science and the tailoring process. 

The knowledge exchange seminar will allow attendees to learn about our current work and give everyone involved the chance to share feedback on the process. Research findings from the CUSTOMISE project and sub-studies on DAFNE will be presented, and DAFNE leads and facilitators from both new and established sites will share their implementation experiences.  Those attending the seminar will share their expectations and thoughts about it by completing a survey before and after the event. The surveys will allow us to understand the impact of the event and also to hear more from the DAFNE teams.  

We want the implementation video resources to both educate about implementation science and show our research findings as an example of implementation science in action. The animated video will focus on sharing information about implementation and tailoring in an accessible way. The target audience includes PPI groups, health professionals and researchers in various disciplines. Meanwhile, the real-life video will show a case study of tailoring processes completed as part of the CUSTOMISE project, including interviews and testimonials from those involved.  

Knowledge Translation Award Outputs:

There are currently no outputs to report.