Critical issues in mental health service delivery: what are the priorities?

Knowledge dissemination and utilization in gerontology: an organizing framework

PURPOSE

Enabling valuable research findings to be used by the field requires a strategic approach to dissemination and utilization rather than simply making constituencies aware of the information. This article describes a conceptual framework for the dissemination and utilization of information, along with examples of its use by the Boston University Roybal Center for Enhancement of Late Life Function.

DESIGN AND METHODS

The framework identifies dissemination/utilization goals of exposure, experience, expertise, and embedding ("4 E") and relates each goal to strategies targeted for specific users.

RESULTS AND IMPLICATIONS

The Boston University center exposed the field to information through presentations, print- and Web-based information, provided consumers and family members with new findings through motivational videotapes, developed expertise-level training programs, and embedded the new findings within organizations and systems. The 4 E framework can translate critical research outcomes into useful information to assist the field to better care and support available for individuals in late life.

A framework for understanding participation in community mental health services

Citizen participation has been associated with confusing rhetoric and conflicting philosophical rationales, both in its long history in America and in the community mental health movement. While CMHCs have emphasized participation less than many other social programs begun in the 1960s, participatory roles have evolved. Some of the confusion surrounding this complex topic can be clarified by distinguishing three dimensions of participation--power, participants and program functions. Conflicting societal trends have the future of participation in the community mental health movement uncertain.