Translating Clinical Research to Clinical Care in Nephrology: A Qualitative Study of Nephrology Clinicians

Abstract

Rationale & ObjectiveThe translation of clinical research to practice has been the subject of intense scrutiny in the efforts to identify ways to improve the uptake of findings that can enhance patient care.Study DesignThis study evaluated the experience of nephrology health care providers who manage patients with autosomal dominant polycystic kidney disease (ADPKD) to identify promoters and barriers to the translation of research results into clinical practice. We used inductive thematic analysis to evaluate the experience, attitudes, and beliefs of physicians in the evaluation and translation of research findings into clinical practice for the care of patients with ADPKD.Setting & ParticipantsParticipants in a continuing education activity on ADPKD volunteered for semistructured interviews exploring their experience translating new knowledge into care for patients with ADPKD. An independent institutional review board (Solutions IRB) found the study to be exempt as an educational survey.Analytical ApproachTranscripts were coded and excerpted, and emergent themes and relationships were identified through an analysis performed using Dedoose software. Particular attention was paid to characterizing the facilitators and barriers to research translation at different levels of the health care environment.ResultsTextual interpretation of data from 13 interviews showed that while well-established barriers to research translation are prevalent among health care providers managing patients with ADPKD, these clinicians also face unique challenges. Principal among these is the burden of interpreting the clinical research literature given the lack of official guidelines.LimitationsThis study did not explore the translation of all levels of research, such as basic science and animal studies, and it was limited to the translation of knowledge from clinical studies. The number of participants was limited but was found to be sufficient for saturation.ConclusionsWe identified factors that may either enhance or impede research translation for nephrology health care providers. These observations may help in the design of continuing education interventions to promote innovation.