Capacity Of Partnerships Research Articles

Strategies to implement evidence-informed decision making at the organizational level: a rapid systematic review

BackgroundAchievement of evidence-informed decision making (EIDM) requires the integration of evidence into all practice decisions by identifying and synthesizing evidence, then developing and executing plans to implement and evaluate changes to practice. This rapid systematic review synthesizes evidence for strategies for the implementation of EIDM across organizations, mapping facilitators and barriers to the COM-B (capability, opportunity, motivation, behaviour) model for behaviour change. The review was conducted to support leadership at organizations delivering public health services (health promotion, communicable disease prevention) to drive change toward evidence-informed public health.MethodsA systematic search was conducted in multiple databases and by reviewing publications of key authors. Articles that describe interventions to drive EIDM within teams, departments, or organizations were eligible for inclusion. For each included article, quality was assessed, and details of the intervention, setting, outcomes, facilitators and barriers were extracted. A convergent integrated approach was undertaken to analyze both quantitative and qualitative findings.ResultsThirty-seven articles are included. Studies were conducted in primary care, public health, social services, and occupational health settings. Strategies to implement EIDM included the establishment of Knowledge Broker-type roles, building the EIDM capacity of staff, and research or academic partnerships. Facilitators and barriers align with the COM-B model for behaviour change. Facilitators for capability include the development of staff knowledge and skill, establishing specialized roles, and knowledge sharing across the organization, though staff turnover and subsequent knowledge loss was a barrier to capability. For opportunity, facilitators include the development of processes or mechanisms to support new practices, forums for learning and skill development, and protected time, and barriers include competing priorities. Facilitators identified for motivation include supportive organizational culture, expectations for new practices to occur, recognition and positive reinforcement, and strong leadership support. Barriers include negative attitudes toward new practices, and lack of understanding and support from management.ConclusionThis review provides a comprehensive analysis of facilitators and barriers for the implementation of EIDM in organizations for public health, mapped to the COM-B model for behaviour change. The existing literature for strategies to support EIDM in public health illustrates several facilitators and barriers linked to realizing EIDM. Knowledge of these factors will help senior leadership develop and implement EIDM strategies tailored to their organization, leading to increased likelihood of implementation success.Review registrationPROSPERO CRD42022318994.

Abstract B080: Collaborative work groups to reduce Wisconsin’s breast and lung cancer disparities

Abstract Introduction: Cancer disparities are complex, requiring an approach which engages diverse sectors with knowledge of biology, behavior, and the socio-cultural and physical environments. Such transdisciplinary work requires a shift in thinking and practice across multiple sectors. To create meaningful interactions across sectors, we must grow the capacity of community-academic partnerships to work together equitably and innovatively. Collaborative Work Groups (CWG) is a program of the Community Cancer Science Network (CCSN) initiative of the Medical College of Wisconsin Cancer Center to address breast and lung cancer disparities statewide. CCSN uses a transdisciplinary approach which integrates academic and non-academic perspectives in the understanding of cancer disparities and in implementation of solutions. CCSN is grounded in three principles: deep equity, systems thinking and a biology to policy approach to solutions. Methods: The goal of the CWG program is to build and engage collaborative teams over an extended period of time to focus deeply on community level solutions to eliminate cancer disparities and achieve positive health outcomes. A critical first step is to understand the issues facing local communities, integrate diverse sectors with knowledge of biology, behavior, and the socio-cultural and physical environments, and develop work groups to create an equitable voice for all participants to contribute to designing viable solutions. CWGs focus on collaborations between diverse teams of academics, community partners and cancer survivors. They will create an equitable co-learning space allowing teams an opportunity to build empathy with those affected by the disparity and grow their understanding of a specific topic related to breast or lung cancer and reimagine how it might look to successfully address this topic. CWGs will use a human-centered design approach to co-design solutions to be implemented in the second phase of the project. This presentation offers the opportunity to learn the background of the initiative, including: 1) the rationale for the selection of certain breast and lung cancer topics; 2) the engagement of three community organizations to serve as local champions and owners of the work; 3) a discussion of the process to develop the infrastructure required to work collaboratively; and 4) early lessons learned from engaging work groups in a Human Centered Design process to consider cancer disparities and imagine potential solutions. Conclusion: Collaborative work groups can contribute to eliminating cancer disparities and achieve positive health outcomes in targeted communities through a human centered design process that integrates diverse sectors with knowledge of biology, behavior, and the socio-cultural and physical environments, and creates an equitable voice for all participants to contribute to designing viable solutions. Citation Format: Staci Young, Tim Meister, David Frazer, Tobi Cawthra, Laura Pinsoneault, Melinda Stolley. Collaborative work groups to reduce Wisconsin’s breast and lung cancer disparities [abstract]. In: Proceedings of the 15th AACR Conference on the Science of Cancer Health Disparities in Racial/Ethnic Minorities and the Medically Underserved; 2022 Sep 16-19; Philadelphia, PA. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Cancer Epidemiol Biomarkers Prev 2022;31(1 Suppl):Abstract nr B080.

Developing Palliative Medicine as an Accredited Medical Specialty in Kenya

PURPOSEMost people living with life-limiting illnesses in Kenya lack access to palliative care. Globally, palliative medicine is a growing specialty that equips clinicians with the training required to improve the quality of life for people living with a wide variety of serious illnesses. Optimal delivery relies on a skilled workforce with specialty-level training, and we identified the absence of board-accredited training programs for clinical officers (COs) and physicians as a barrier to providing high-quality palliative care in Kenya.METHODSWe held a series of stakeholder meetings with expert palliative care clinicians, leaders, and educators from Kenya and other countries to develop and implement a comprehensive, evidence-based palliative medicine curriculum for COs.RESULTSWe developed a higher diploma program that is being administered by the Moi Teaching and Referral Hospital College in Eldoret, Kenya, with faculty from Moi University School of Medicine and affiliated institutions. We have collaborated to create the first diploma awarding program in palliative medicine in Kenya. Our efforts have led the Kenyan CO Council adding palliative medicine to their list of recognized and licensed specialties. COs are now enrolled in an 18-month program that will lead to a higher diploma and national recognition as palliative care specialists.CONCLUSIONEarly building of consensus and educating policymakers, regulatory bodies, and government personnel was an important step to overcome the challenge of palliative care misconceptions. The unique capacity of global partnerships and early and frequent stakeholder involvement is critical in novel program development. Local ownership of such in-country programs is key, and the stakeholders should be included in strategies for sustainability.

Defend the core: Maintaining intact rangelands by reducing vulnerability to invasive annual grasses

• New geographic strategies provide the landscape context needed for effective management of invasive annual grasses in sagebrush country. • Identifying and proactively defending intact rangeland cores from annual grass invasion is a top priority for management. • Minimizing vulnerability of rangeland cores to annual grass conversion includes reducing exposure to annual grass seed sources, improving resilience and resistance by promoting perennial plants, and building capacity of communities and partnerships to adapt to changing conditions and respond to the problem with appropriate actions in a timely manner.

From Assistants to Partners

Student-faculty partnerships are a growing practice in scholarship of teaching & learning (SoTL) projects. They can foster greater student engagement in higher education and help advance teaching & learning experiences. For graduate students, in particular those pursuing academic careers, such partnerships can offer opportunities for development of their professional identities as emerging SoTL scholars. In this article, we expand upon previous theorizations of partnerships to include the unique attributes of graduate student partnerships, such as in terms of longer timeframes, increased complexity, and long-term goals. Drawing on a two-year SoTL study, we present a three-layer framework characterizing key attributes for a successful graduate student-faculty partnership: 1) individual attributes in a partnership, 2) collective attributes for a partnership, and 3) outcomes of a partnership. The framework is grounded in literature and illustrative examples from our experiences as graduate students and faculty members working together in partnership with a SoTL project. This framework offers a structured mechanism to inform, create, and enhance the capacity of student-faculty partnerships in SoTL research.

The Missing Ingredient for Successful Multi-Stakeholder Partnerships: Cooperative Capacity

Multi-stakeholder partnerships are an essential vehicle for solving complex societal problems. Agreements governing these partnerships often lack equitable partner agency in framing and enforcing multi-stakeholder agreements. This challenges the partner cooperation needed of partnerships to be effective. This theoretical paper introduces a new original model to measure and develop the cooperative capacity of multi-stakeholder partnerships so that future agreements involving the partnership are framed to share governance equitably among all partners and hence, increase partnership performance and effectiveness. The model provides a methodology to measure and develop the cooperative capacity of multi-stakeholder partnerships through key performance indicators that identify the cooperative state of partners and predicts partnership effectiveness in achieving common goals. The paper traces the theoretical genesis of the model, presents a comprehensive explanation of the model, and provides cases of the model’s application.

Scaling up Action on Urban Sustainable Food Systems in the United Kingdom: Agenda Setting, Networking, and Influence

There has been an increasing focus on the potential of city-based initiatives to address the negative impacts of the global food system. Adopting a meso-level policy perspective, this study aimed to explore whether, how, and why the UK non-government organisation led Sustainable Food Cities (SFC) programme has influenced this food agenda at the level of city governance. The research fills a gap in our understanding of the detailed processes through which trans-local food networks influence the capacity of local food partnerships to effect change, sustain themselves, and through a collective effort, to shape the attention of national and international decision-makers. Based on documentary evidence from 29 of the most active member cities and interviews with a purposive selection of stakeholders, the analysis suggests that SFC provided a point of origin for solutions and inspiration on a major and complex issue. However, the absence of a national sustainable food policy framework and little formal national-government recognition of local food governance together with the paucity of funding opportunities threatens the long-term viability of local food partnerships and ultimately places significant constraints on the ability of the programme to effect long-lasting, systemic change.

An Inclusive Approach to Partnerships for the SDGs: Using a Relationship Lens to Explore the Potential for Transformational Collaboration

Partnerships are positioned as critical for the achievement of the Sustainable Development Goals and the United Nations transformational agenda for 2030. The widespread use of terms such as ‘collaboration’, ‘partnership’ and ‘cooperation’ has, however, led to debates about the expectations of such relationships and calls have been made for more rigorous clarification and classification of these related concepts. Drawing upon a comprehensive literature review, we argue in this conceptual paper that the broad spectrum of personal and organizational interactions within, between and across different sectors, domains, disciplines and contexts makes the quest to delineate and categorize these diverse forms of collaboration a seemingly impossible task. We further suggest that such efforts advance a narrow view of partnership as little more than a means to an end, thus limiting understanding of the integrative and intrinsic value of working in this way. We believe that a more inclusive understanding of partnerships may be achieved by exploring them through a relationship lens that acknowledges the importance of inter-personal connections in partnerships more deeply. In doing so, the capacity of partnerships to generate the systemic change that is at the heart of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development may be enhanced and ultimately realized.

Engaging patients and stakeholders in preresearch: findings from the Pipeline to Proposal Awards Initiative.

Aim: The Patient-Centered Outcomes Research Institute Pipeline to Proposal (P2P) Awards Initiative funded 177 awardees to engage patients and stakeholder partners in preresearch. Based on P2P, we described engagement strategies; outcomes; facilitators; and challenges to inform research funders and stakeholders participating in preresearch. Materials & methods: We used a qualitative approach based on content analysis of program data and interviews with P2P awardees and partners. Results: Awardees developed partnership infrastructure by recruiting patients and stakeholders, establishing clear roles, and providing training. Building trust was key to engaging patients and stakeholders in preresearch. Awardees reported partners were more likely to engage in PCOR in the future. Conclusion: P2P awardees increased capacity of patient and stakeholder partnerships to conduct PCOR.

Capacity to Become Party of Unregistered (Ordinary) Partnerships: A Comparative Study of German, Swiss and Turkish Law

Unregistered (ordinary) partnerships do not have legal status under Turkish law. That’s why these partnerships are not entitled to undoubtedly have the capacity to be a party at court; however, there are some developments in Germany related to the legal capacity of unregistered partnerships. According to the German Supreme Court, these partnerships are able to have rights and obligations, and these partnerships can be parties at courts. It means that they can implement the action of suing another party, or in turn be brought an action against. In this article, the question needs to be answered if it is at all possible to accept the decision of the German Supreme Court in Turkey or not. To typically acquire elucidation to this question, Turkish and German doctrine and court decisions compared and the reasons for the Court’s decision are assessed. Furthermore, fundamental doctrine, as well as court decisions in Switzerland, is analyzed to decide Turkish Law. At the ultimate end of this informative article, a new model is conclusively suggested for Turkey.

Interrelated model of farmer behaviour and agricultural resources in the development of ginger agribusiness at the on-farm level

Ginger agribusiness has business prospects that can increase farmers’ income, open employment opportunities and reduce poverty. The problem in the development of ginger agribusiness is the absence of studies on farmer behaviour at the on-farm level and its interaction with agricultural resources. For this reason, it is necessary to map the behaviour of farmers in cultivation, yield processing and marketing of ginger, and interrelate the behaviour of farmers with agricultural resources in ginger agribusiness. Mapping behaviour of farmers includes knowledge, attitudes, and skills in cultivation, processing, and marketing. In the next stage, technology insemination and ginger agribusiness development models are needed. The results showed that the behaviour of ginger farmers at the on-farm level was in the medium and high category in six villages in Moramo Subdistrict. The potential of ginger farmers was the experience of ginger cultivation and interest in business development. Supporting factors of ginger agribusiness include land ownership, land suitability, and availability of ginger seeds. The constraints of ginger agribusiness development were weather changes and price fluctuations. The model of ginger agribusiness development needs to be directed at strengthening the capacity of farmers, partnerships and value-added products to increase the competitiveness of ginger.

Mobilizing Change in Public Services: Insights from a Systems Leadership Development Intervention

ABSTRACTThis paper explores the mobilization of systems change through analysis of a place-based ‘systems leadership’ development intervention aimed to develop the capacity of cross-sector partnerships to tackle ‘wicked’ health and social care challenges. Particular attention is given to the role of independent ‘enablers’ in opening up ‘adaptive spaces’ where partners can navigate competing priorities and develop new ways of working. This paper contributes to existing literature by providing an overview of recent developments in the field of public leadership, applying these to the challenge of developing systems leadership capacity and considering implications for future research, development and practice.

Capturing Collaborative Challenges: Designing Complexity-Sensitive Theories of Change for Cross-Sector Partnerships

Systems change requires complex interventions. Cross-sector partnerships (CSPs) face the daunting task of addressing complex societal problems by aligning different backgrounds, values, ideas and resources. A major challenge for CSPs is how to link the type of partnership to the intervention needed to drive change. Intervention strategies are thereby increasingly based on Theories of Change (ToCs). Applying ToCs is often a donor requirement, but it also reflects the ambition of a partnership to enhance its transformative potential. The current use of ToCs in partnering efforts varies greatly. There is a tendency for a linear and relatively simple use of ToCs that does limited justice to the complexity of the problems partnerships aim to address. Since partnership dynamics are already complex and challenging themselves, confusion and disagreement over the appropriate application of ToCs is likely to hamper rather than enhance the transformative potential of partnerships. We develop a complexity alignment framework and a diagnostic tool that enables partnerships to better appreciate the complexity of the context in which they operate, allowing them to adjust their learning strategy. This paper applies recent insights into how to deal with complexity from both the evaluation and theory of change fields to studies investigating the transformative capacity of partnerships. This can (1) serve as a check to define the challenges of partnering projects and (2) can help delineate the societal sources and layers of complexity that cross-sector partnerships deal with such as failure, insufficient responsibility taking and collective action problems at four phases of partnering.

DIFFUSION OF GLOBAL SUSTAINABILITY STANDARDS: THE INSTITUTIONAL FIT OF THE ASC-SHRIMP STANDARD IN INDONESIA

ABSTRACT The past two decades saw a rapid proliferation of sustainability standards created by multi-stakeholder partnerships of multinationals and international NGOs. This paper argues that the transformative capacity of these global partnerships to bring about sustainable change largely depends on how well the institutional features of global sustainability standards fit local organizational fields. This paper therefore aims to unravel the dynamics of global-local interactions. To this end, the concept of institutional fit is operationalized to assess whether and how the technical, cultural and political characteristics intrinsic to global sustainability standards are able to connect to local projects, strategies and practices. The introduction of the Aquaculture Stewardship Council's standard into the Indonesian shrimp sector is used as a case to investigate these interactions. This paper shows that a process of fitting occurs when provisional institutions generated within a global partnership can be modified. We argue that global sustainability standards can benefit from steering more explicitly on dovetailing regulative and normative structures of global and local organizational fields. Local NGOs can play important mediating roles in this regard, which can potentially increase the transformative capacity of global standards in terms of generating and accelerating sustainable change.

Place-keeping in action: Evaluating the capacity of green space partnerships in England

Residents and communities have long been interested in managing their local green spaces. As local authority budgets become increasingly restricted, communities are under pressure to take an active role in green space management in partnerships with the public, and where applicable, private sector. Support for such partnerships has been made manifest at the highest level of government through the UK's 2011 Localism Act. However, there is little research exploring the validity of expectations that community groups can take on such responsibility. This paper addresses this gap in knowledge by assessing to what extent groups have the capacity within cross-sector partnerships for sustained green space ‘place-keeping’, or long-term responsive management. This paper reports on data collected about nine cross-sector partnerships in Sheffield, Hackney, and Stockton-on-Tees. Taking a qualitative research approach, this paper applies a framework for partnership capacity based on interrelated factors, including capital, commitment, skill base, motivation, communication and political influence. The findings show that partnership capacity goes beyond these themes; it can be influenced by the political and historical legacy of a given place and the specific nature and context of place-keeping tasks. While findings show that partnerships work positively in practice, there are a number of barriers to community groups managing green spaces independently of local authorities, occurring at different scales including individual, group, partnership and the wider context. Without sustained resources and ongoing public sector support, the effectiveness of place-keeping partnerships is called into question.

Partnerships of a feather flock together? An analysis of the emergence of networks of partnerships in the global cocoa sector

AbstractIn this article, we move away from the case study approach dominant in the literature on partnerships and explore the emergence of networks of partnerships. Taking the global cocoa sector as our research setting, we examine 55 partnerships to analyse the linkages between them, their evolution over time, as well as the simultaneous occurrence of cooperation and competition. We discover that the partnerships are connected to each other through overlapping memberships of organizations and increasingly also through institutional linkages. The linkages between the partnerships channel the flow of resources and thereby reinforce the capacity of individual partnerships. A meta‐governance organization, which steers and coordinates the broader sustainability efforts of the cocoa industry, enhances the impact of the linkages. Our analysis shows that partnerships should be studied not only as autonomous entities but also as networks of partnerships.

Community-Based Organizational Capacity Building as a Strategy to Reduce Racial Health Disparities

One of the biggest challenges facing racial health disparities research is identifying how and where to implement effective, sustainable interventions. Community-based organizations (CBOs) and community-academic partnerships are frequently utilized as vehicles to conduct community health promotion interventions without attending to the viability and sustainability of CBOs or capacity inequities among partners. Utilizing organizational empowerment theory, this paper describes an intervention designed to increase the capacity of CBOs and community-academic partnerships to implement strategies to improve community health. The Capacity Building project illustrates how capacity building interventions can help to identify community health needs, promote community empowerment, and reduce health disparities.

Partnership synergy: a practical framework for studying and strengthening the collaborative advantage.

The substantial interest and investment in health partnerships in the United States is based on the assumption that collaboration is more effective in achieving health and health system goals than efforts carried out by single agents. A clear conceptualization of the mechanism that accounts for the collaborative advantage, and a way to measure it are needed to test this assumption and to strengthen the capacity of partnerships to realize the full potential of collaboration. The mechanism that gives collaboration its unique advantage is synergy. A framework for operationalizing and assessing partnership synergy, and for identifying its likely determinants, can be used to address critical policy, evaluation, and management issues related to collaboration.

WATERSHED ASSISTANCE GRANTS: BUILDING CAPACITY OF MULTI-INTEREST WATERSHED PARTNERSHIPS

WATERSHED ASSISTANCE GRANTS: BUILDING CAPACITY OF MULTI-INTEREST WATERSHED PARTNERSHIPSIn 1998, River Network teamed up with the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to institute the pilot Watershed Assistance Grants (WAG) program. The purpose of the WAG program is to support innovative efforts that build the capacity of community-based partnerships to conserve and restore watersheds.Studies show that while foundations and contributors may acknowledge the importance of having...Author(s)Katherine LuscherAbby FeinsteinJanet PawlukiewiczSourceProceedings of the Water Environment FederationSubjectSession 16 - Evaluating Public Involvement Processes and ResultsDocument typeConference PaperPublisherWater Environment FederationPrint publication date Jan, 2000ISSN1938-6478SICI1938-6478(20000101)2000:6L.1458;1-DOI10.2175/193864700785149350Volume / Issue2000 / 6Content sourceWatershed ConferenceFirst / last page(s)1458 - 1473Copyright2000Word count243