What is Implementation Science?
Implementation science is the the systematic study of how to improve the adoption of evidence-based interventions into clinical practice and real-world settings. For example, evidence has shown that incorporating patient-reported symptoms in to clinical care improves patient-physician communication, symptom management and symptom control.
For IMPACT, implementation research will be conducted in several clinical practices to evaluate systems that are integrated into the electronic health record to collect and monitor patient-reported symptoms related to cancer. Evaluation will include how the cancer symptom data trigger a clinical response that is consistent with evidence-based guidelines, and how that response impacts patient outcomes.
This paper written by NCI research scientists and published in the Journal of Oncology Practice explores the impact of implementation science on patient outcomes in oncology.
For the latest developments in the field, read the monthly newsletter from the Consortium for Implementation Science.