Addressing Fragmentation of Health Services through Data-Driven Knowledge Co-Production within a Boundary Organization

Abstract

Behavioral healthcare services involve multiple disconnected sectors and providers serving the same populations. Efforts to identify and address service delivery problems are hampered by fragmentation of datasets. We conducted an engaged research project in which we formed a boundary organization and developed a knowledge co-production process centered on collaborative data sharing and visualization. Multisector participants in [location] worked to access and share data and to collectively interpret the resulting integrated data through visualizations using four knowledge co-production practices: collective interaction with data, perspective taking, reflection & debrief, and iteration of visualizations. The knowledge co-production process was evaluated using qualitative methods. This research extends sociotechnical research on knowledge co-production by proffering collaborative data sharing and visualization as a knowledge co-production process that can extend across disconnected and disparate social groups and contributes to community informatics by highlighting the role boundary organizations can play in facilitating data sharing and data-driven problem solving between fragmented sectors.