Online Symposium: Systems Matter
Virtual
Systems Matter: Why Systems Thinking is Essential for Bridging the Mental Health Research Implementation Gap
Too often, research produces interventions that are difficult to scale. This is frustrating for researchers, funders, and critically, those poised to benefit from these interventions. So, how can we bridge the implementation gap?
At the heart of this question is the challenge of how to connect research evidence to real world settings - that is, how to produce actionable evidence. We’ll be exploring this in depth through a series of three online symposia inspired by The Lancet Psychiatry Commission on Transforming Mental Health Implementation Research. We will be digging into how (1) systems thinking can transform implementation, (2) exploring what we mean by evidence and (3) looking at implementation through the lens of the information needed by decision-makers.
In this first session, chaired by Sireesha Bobbili from Grand Challenges Canada, Professor Jeffrey Braithwaite will discuss how we define systems thinking using an integrated research-implementation model. We’ll then take a deep dive with some practical examples illustrating interventions at different points of the system.
- Dr. Dan Chisholm will discuss lessons from the EMERALD consortium systems strengthening programme,
- Dr. Bibilola Oladeji will share learnings from training and capacity building efforts for mental health care and research in Nigeria,
- Rosemary Gathara will reflect on community-led innovation through her experience at Basic Needs Basic Rights Kenya, and
- Dr. Deb Chiodo will talk about embedding research into care to create a learning health system for youth mental health.
We’ll then be joined by co-Commissioners, Dr. Beth McGinty and Dr. Matthew Eisenberg who will reflect on what gets in the way of systems thinking, where the opportunities are – and how their recommendations could help.
You can find The Lancet Psychiatry policy brief on the Commission here.
*Stay tuned for information about the next event in the series: “What do we mean by evidence in mental health research?”. Save the date, Thursday 6 February 2025 (8.30am-11.30am Eastern, 1.30pm-4.30pm GMT, 2.30pm-5.30pm CET/WAT)
*Mental health equity will be a cross-cutting theme across our symposia – because connecting evidence to the real world means considering how local structural and social determinants of mental health play out in different contexts. Further, efficacy and effectiveness studies are often done in populations who face minimal barriers to participation and access – resulting in a ‘voltage drop’ at the point of scaling.