CUGH 2023 Plenary 8: Investing and Building Capacity in Implementation Science

Please note: this video contains the powerpoint presentations from this session and the audio, but it does not include video footage of the panelists speaking.

From Science to Sustainable Real-world Impact: Investing and Building Capacity in Implementation Science to Catalyze, Scale and Sustain Proven Interventions in Global Health Delivery

There are many proven innovations in global health that are never widely adopted partly due to inadequate understanding of how to effectively implement them in different settings. Further, implementation challenges continue to cost lives that could be saved, present significant economic burden and lead to waste of scarce resources. Key actors in implementation include researchers and non-researchers bringing different perspectives to this field presenting a rare and unique opportunity to make interventions work better. Evidence generated from implementation provides crucial knowledge that can and should be further validated through research methods and most importantly should inform key decisions of policy and practice importance through structured processes. However, implementation science/research has to be conducted properly if it is to be valuable to implementers. Implementation science seeks to routinize a systematic uptake of research findings and other evidence-based practices thereby improving the quality, effectiveness and equitable implementation of health service interventions. Additionally, offering opportunities for future discovery and innovation. This requires intentional infusion of investment as well as continuous capacity building of practitioners to support the implementation science agenda. This session will focus on three main areas: 1. The journey from implementation science to policy and practice; 2. The need for strong investment in implementation science; 3. The challenges/barriers we will need to overcome to move the implementation science agenda forward.

Moderator:
Deus Bazira, Director, Global Health Institute and Center for Global Health Practice & Impact, Georgetown University, USA

Speakers:
Jennifer Kates, Senior Vice President and Director of Global Health & HIV Policy, Kaiser Family Foundation, USA
Charles Holmes, Director, Center for Innovation in Global Health, Georgetown University, USA
Peter Kilmarx, Acting Director, Fogarty International Center, National Institutes of Health, USA
Nadia A. Sam-Agudu, Senior Technical Advisor, Pediatric and Adolescent HIV, Institute of Human Virology Nigeria, University of Maryland School of Medicine, Nigeria/United States