Our Impact Fellowship is for people who are interested in developing knowledge and skills to implement and disseminate for impact evidence-based improvements in health and care settings. The focus of this fellowship is on local applied research and implementation projects, while building local capacity for evidence-informed practice.
The fellowship comprises of attendance at implementation and knowledge mobilisation education sessions, and conducting an implementation project (normally in the fellow’s workplace). There are two types of project that fall under Impact fellow scheme:
- Implementation: The project to be implemented must be underpinned by rigorous, relevant evidence but can entail the adaptation of such evidence to fit novel context(s). An essential requirement of the implementation fellowship is to make it valuable to the employing organisation.
- Knowledge Mobilisation: An area of evidence-based change has been identified (either from the individual’s research, from other’s research, or from clinical guidance) that needs to be disseminated and put into practice to bring about change in the service.
The ARC East of England is able to draw on a wide range of implementation strategies, tools, and techniques to enact change in the most impactful way, taking organisational context, the innovation, and the wider health and care landscape into account. People, teams, and relationships between organisations are critical when implementing research and leading change. Impact Fellows are supported by ARC East of England’s Implementation Lead, Dr Sarah Robinson, Director of Delivery at Health Innovation East, and Dr Danielle Tucker, ARC East of England’s Knowledge Mobilisation Lead.
The programme begins with tailored weekly sessions from April to May, developing understanding in research, change management, and implementation science, and drawing on the wide range of implementation activities and expertise supported by Health Innovation East. Fellows present their project proposals for feedback in June. While carrying out their projects, fellows participate in Action Learning Sets held throughout the year, offering peer support and collaborative learning under the guidance of an experienced facilitator. Additional workshops guide fellows in planning their clinical academic careers, culminating in a final showcase in March of the following year, where they present their outputs.