Building research capacity within the BC health authorities

The Health Authority Capacity Building (HACB) program was the largest of these and was directed at expanding the capacity of the six BC health authorities (HAs) to engage in and use health services and policy research. [...] The evidence for increased research capacity being developed during the period of the HACB program was examined in four areas: • research production and utilization skills of HA staff; • linkages and partnerships between health authorities, researchers, and other research- support initiatives; • use of evidence for policy and program changes within the HA; and i Executive Summary • tangible and in [...] It is believed that the increase in research skills of HA staff and the formation of numerous research partnerships were directly attributable to the HACB grant for most of the HAs. [...] To understand the types and purpose of activities undertaken by the health authorities and how they evolved over time, each health authority was asked to provide a list of the initiatives undertaken throughout the grant period and to indicate which of the capacity building components was addressed by each one. [...] IH identified challenges in establishing partnerships with academic institutions and Development and maintenance of IH Research Website research centres (the launch of the satellite campus of UBC Okanagan and Thompson Figure 4 Change in capacity building components addressed Rivers University coincided with the start-up by Interior Health initiatives over the course of the HACB grant of the HACB g