The George Mason University Center for Health Policy and Ethics, in collaboration with the Rural Policy Research Institute (RUPRI), an interdisciplinary rural policy research consortium, proposes to convene a 1-1/2 day learning summit in mid-November to explore mechanisms for better linking research to the policy process. Participants will be rural health services researchers, health policymakers, and members of the health trade media and policy opinion makers who report on the national health policy scene. Although researchers, journalists, and policymakers are natural allies in the policy development process, their working conditions, operating principles and different perspectives (e.g., independence, speed, compromise) may frustrate their complementary roles and the transformation of new information into useful applications for the public good. Of necessity, the development of information, its uses and translations vary among these professional groups. Therefore, a conference is proposed that is structured to encourage a better appreciation for these distinct roles and forge links to enhance the flow of quality information along a national pipeline of research, public debate, and policy formation. This meeting will be organized and hosted by members of the rural health services research and rural health policy communities. Incorporating discussion of national policies affecting rural health conditions, the meeting will focus on ways rural researchers can better present and disseminate their work for public understanding. More specifically, strategies that can strengthen this research community s ability to inform public policy decisions with timely data will be proposed and discussed.
