The Multisystem Knowledge Integration and Translation Model

Running head: APPRAISING THE MULTISYSTEM MODEL OF KNOWLEDGE
INTEGRATION AND TRANSLATION 1
Appraising the Multisystem Knowledge Integration and Translation Model
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APPRAISING THE MULTISYSTEM MODEL OF KNOWLEDGE INTEGRATION AND
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Appraising the Multisystem Knowledge Integration and Translation Model
Research is key to providing evidence upon which medical practice is based. Research
knowledge is widely used in the health sector to enhance quality and improve healthcare
services. Such knowledge is derived from robust scholarly available information for its
implementation and success. There are several available health-related materials (about 2
million) published in over 20,000 healthcare journals every year (Masic & Milinovic, 2012). In
addition to the journals, there is an increasing number of electronic databases availing healthcare
data to the healthcare practitioners. This plethora of information hints at the provision of
improved healthcare services that are informed by available evidence if it is appropriately used in
healthcare decision making and practice. More than accessing research information is the
translation of this knowledge and evidence into practice for effective and efficient services that
quench customer needs and desires. According to Fry et al. (2018), translation of knowledge is a
process by which research knowledge is created, circulated and adopted into healthcare service
practice. In a broad sense, knowledge translation (KT) is "the synthesis, exchange, and ethically
sound application of knowledge within a complex system of interactions among researchers and
users to accelerate the capture of the benefits of research... through improved health, more
effective service and products, and a strengthened health care system." (Palmer & Kramlich,
2011). There is a continuous development of new information by the healthcare professionals to
aid healthcare practitioners in providing the best practice to their customers (Palmer & Kramlich,
2011). The availability and utilization of this information does not necessarily translate to the
advancement of the healthcare services. In fact, improvement or advancement of healthcare
services is slow and inconsistent due to the ineffective translation of research outcomes into
practice (Grimshaw et al., 2012). An assessment of quality care has proven that the healthcare

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system exhibits a below-par performance on its ability to translate knowledge into practice
(Steven, 2013). Research conducted in the US and Netherlands show that 40-30% of the patients
do not receive health care based on current evidence (Grimshaw et al., 2012). Many strategies
have been devised to enhance the implementation of research evidence however, many of them
lack a conceptual framework (Palmer & Kramlich, 2011). Therefore, the translation models
become difficult for some user to comprehend. Also, these models have proved to be insufficient
since they fail to integrate empirical knowledge and the tacit knowledge of the healthcare
practitioner. In this article, the new translation model that ameliorates knowledge translation
hurdles called the Multisystem Model of Knowledge Integration and Translation (MKIT), will be
described and appraised. Further, its advantages and limitations will be discussed.
MKIT is a model designed by Palmer and Kramlich that guides healthcare professionals
through the innovation and implementation phases of generating knowledge, incorporation and
its translation (Palmer and Kramlich, 2011). Recognizing that the efforts of coming up with
medical knowledge had made tremendous progress as opposed to knowledge implementation,
the authors carried out an extensive literature research coupled with interviews and came up with
this comprehensive model addressing systemic implementation of information in healthcare. The
healthcare practitioners always have the desire to improve the quality of their services however,
they face the challenge of utilizing the available research to this course. Also, the researchers
carry out studies on topics of their individual interests and passions which may conflict the
hospital administrations' plans. The MKIT considers the aforementioned hurdles to enhance the
implementation and sustainability of evidence oriented practice in healthcare facilities by
providing appropriate guidelines for responding to the needs of changing practices (Camargo et
al., 2017). The authors of MKIT further argues that a social relationship among the researchers,

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researcher utilizers, and the facility management is influential in achieving EBP. Furthermore, a
simple and understandable process of translation research evidence into practice by integrating
both tacit (clinician experience) and explicit (Knowledge obtained from research) knowledge is
necessary for effective knowledge translation (Palmer & Kramlich, 2011). In this course, Palmer
and Kramlich identified the use of communities of practice (CoP) conceptual framework for
effective knowledge integration and translation (Palmer & Kramlich, 2011).
The CoP is defined as a team of persons that have a specific concern, set of challenges
and passion on a given area or topic in common who intend to expand their professionalism and
knowledge through continuous interaction (Krishnaveni & Sujatha, 2012). Communities of
practice involve three elements namely domain, community and practice whose relation
facilitates informal interactions, information sharing and networking (Saint-Onge & Wallace,
2012). In pursuit of a research domain, members group themselves through joint activities,
networking and sharing of information even though they do not work together thereby building
relationships that form a community. Within this community, they develop and share experience,
resources, and tools that are aimed at checking recurrent issues and in the process they share
their practices (Palmer & Kramlich, 2011). The combination of these three elements cultivates
CoP that provides social frameworks which enable people to learn with and from each other
(Palmer & Kramlich, 2011). With this conceptual framework the healthcare professional develop
a collective responsibility for managing knowledge, easily create a connection between learning
and performance that enables them to tackle changing aspects of knowledge creation and
sharing. In the contemporary complex healthcare system, the CoP creates an innovation enabling
environment and social networking for effective knowledge translation (Succar & Kassem,
2016). The use of CoP to facilitate effective translation of evidence has been explored and