Robert Wood Johnson Foundation Practice-Based Research Network in Public Health

The Foundation's initiative, Robert Wood Johnson Foundation Practice-Based Research Network in Public Health, was designed to develop a practice-based research network for public health to help stakeholders understand how public health systems research can be used to improve public health performance and impact.This project of the Georgia public health practice-based research network (PBRN), based at Georgia Southern University, will investigate the comparative effectiveness of two quality improvement (QI) strategies designed to improve local public health performance: (1) a collaborative QI model implemented through regional public health districts vs. (2) a centralized QI model implemented through the state health department structure. The project uses instruments and measures developed through an ongoing Quick Strike research project funded by the program, and enhance the diversity of the network's research team by providing a mentored research experience to a pre-doctoral fellow from an underrepresented background. The PBRN will translate research findings by developing a decision matrix that guides public health agencies in determining whether a regional collaborative model versus a centralized model is most appropriate for supporting QI activities in their jurisdictions, along with a set of implementation steps for each model. Deliverables will include journal articles, briefs, webinars, and presentations that provide practitioners and policy makers with new evidence regarding the effectiveness of regional organizational structures in facilitating the implementation and impact of public health QI strategies.

Grant Details

Amount Awarded $100,000.00

Awarded on: 11/9/2011

Time frame: 10/1/2011 - 6/30/2013

Grant Number: 69493