RE-AIM: Evidence-based standards and a web resource to improve translation of research into practice

Abstract

Background: Health services data indicate that under present conditions evidence-based medical and preventive practices are not consistently implemented in clinical practice and affect the quality of care provided to patients. Operating with similar conditions and resources, it is unlikely that evidence-based behavioral medicine (EBBM) practices will be more successfully implemented. Purpose: In this article we propose ways to help improve the implementation of EBBM practice. Methods: This article describes the RE-AIM (Reach, Efficacy/Effectiveness, Adoption, Implementation, and Maintenance) framework that is available on a free-use Web site (http://www. re-aim.org), which offers practical research translation tools, resources, and support for program planners, community leaders, and researchers. The material located at www.re-aim.org can be used to help anticipate and overcome likely barriers to dissemination and to estimate eventual public health impact. Results: Data on Web site utilization and lessons learned thus far in its implementation are presented. Conclusions: Scientists and public health leaders should devote greater attention to reporting practice-oriented issues such as generalizability, breadth of application, and pragmatic and setting or contextual issues in addition to the current focus on internal validity issues. We hope that this and similar efforts will assist EBBM interventions to have broader applications, be consistently implemented, and be sustained.