Knowledge brokers: a winning strategy for improving knowledge transfer and use in the field of health

In the field of health, decision making based on new evidence is the foundation of a health system that is of quality, efficient, safe and focused on patients’ needs. In this context, knowledge brokers can play a crucial role in the renewal of knowledge favouring quality care and justifying the allocation of resources.In health services, several strategies to improve knowledge utilization and innovation have been promoted. Among them, knowledge brokering is growing. The success of this new approach lies in the role of knowledge brokers in interface intensification in a fragmented social system and where the flow of information is often hampered by cognitive, structural, cultural (etc.) barriers. The various facets of the brokers’ role require very different skills so that they are able to adequately absorb the knowledge that they are regularly exposed to. However, most authors emphasize this dimension and assume that brokers have the cognitive and experiential skills to carry out their activities. Yet, the role of knowledge brokers as intermediaries is widely recognized, while less has been written on how these actors contribute to innovation through their ability to integrate knowledge. In this study, we propose to address said dimension from an innovative theoretical approach. This study is, to our knowledge, the first attempt to apply the knowledge absorptive capacity model to explore knowledge integration by these strategic players in the health network.

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