K Nowledge T Ranslation

Abstract

" We don't receive wisdom: we must discover it for ourselves after a journey that no one can take for us or spare us. " Marcel Proust While the need for policy decisions to be based on sound evidence has widely been acknowledged, the relationship between researchers and decision makers remains, in many circumstances, characterized by mutual tensions and misunderstandings. The idea of two distinct communities, which Nathan Caplan coined in 1979 to describe the gap between these two groups of actors, is indeed still being used today. Research and evidence, however, can have an immense impact on policy and practice, resulting in tangible positive outcomes. In the field of health, for example, successfully incorporating evidence into practice can save millions of lives. Take the case of the Free State province of South Africa, where researchers were invited to collaborate with the Department of Health in the conception and implementation of the Comprehensive Care and Treatment Program (which includes the provision of free anti-retroviral treatment). Not only did researchers provide timely and important information to health officials, but they also designed various aspects of the implementation process, or ARV rollout. Concretely, this has resulted in evidence-based decisions that have led to more effective policies and interventions.