Dissemination of public health research to prevent non-communicable diseases: a scoping review

It included 107 studies, synthesizing them according to the Model for Dissemination of Research (source, message, channel, audience) and study design. A key finding is that only 14% of included studies used experimental designs to directly test dissemination strategies. Researchers were the most frequent source, and peer-reviewed publications and conferences were the predominant channels, with practitioners as the primary target audience. The review highlights a major evidence gap, noting that most studies reported on dissemination preferences or outcomes like awareness and intentions rather than rigorously evaluating effectiveness. Limitations include the challenge of defining dissemination and potential overlap with related fields like health communication. The authors conclude that more experimental research is needed to understand how to most effectively disseminate evidence to close the evidence-practice gap.