Scoping implementation science for the beginner: locating yourself on the “subway line” of translational research
BACKGROUND: Beginners to the discipline of implementation science often struggle to determine whether their research questions “count” as implementation science.
MAIN TEXT: In this paper, three implementation scientists share a heuristic tool to help investigators determine where their research questions fall in the translational research continuum. They use a “subway model” that envisions a journey to implementation research with stops along the way at efficacy and effectiveness research.
CONCLUSIONS: A series of structured questions about intervention efficacy, effectiveness, and implementation can help guide researchers to select research questions and appropriate study designs along the spectrum of translational research.
Lane-Fall, M. B., Curran, G. M., & Beidas, R. S. (2019). Scoping implementation science for the beginner: locating yourself on the "subway line" of translational research. BMC Med Res Methodol, 19(1), 133. doi:10.1186/s12874-019-0783-z