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Characterising the impact of BRAINSPaN: a multidisciplinary community of practice for clinicians and researchers in the brain impairment field

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  05 May 2021

Dana Wong Open the ORCID record for Dana Wong [Opens in a new window] ,
Joanne Steel ,
Katharine Baker  and
Emmah Doig
Dana Wong*
Affiliation:
School of Psychology & Public Health, La Trobe University, Bundoora, VIC, Australia Turner Institute for Brain and Mental Health, School of Psychological Sciences, Monash University, Clayton, VIC, Australia
Joanne Steel
Affiliation:
School of Humanities and Social Sciences, The University of Newcastle, Callaghan, NSW, Australia
Katharine Baker
Affiliation:
School of Psychology & Public Health, La Trobe University, Bundoora, VIC, Australia
Emmah Doig
Affiliation:
The School of Health and Rehabilitation Sciences, The University of Queensland, St Lucia, Brisbane, QLD, Australia
*
*Corresponding author: Email: d.wong@latrobe.edu.au
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Abstract

Background:

Communities of practice can facilitate the sharing and translation of knowledge. BRAINSPaN is a multidisciplinary community of practice of clinicians, researchers and students in the brain impairment field that was launched in Australia in June 2017. We aimed to investigate the impact of BRAINSPaN on multidisciplinary collaboration and on knowledge, skills and confidence in domains of practice of interest to members.

Methods:

We surveyed BRAINSPaN members over three time points at 1-month (n = 117), 7-months (n = 69) and 14-months (n = 46) post-launch. Content analysis of posts to the BRAINSPaN listserv was also conducted to identify their purpose and content.

Results:

Increasing access to new research findings and increasing interaction with others in the brain impairment field were the two main goals for survey respondents’ participation in BRAINSPaN. At 7- and 14-months post-launch, these were also the most commonly achieved goals and most frequently cited benefits of BRAINSPaN participation. Cognitive rehabilitation and behaviour management were the most frequently reported practice domains of interest, as well as being two of the five most common topics of BRAINSPaN posts over the survey period. There was a significant increase in self-reported knowledge for participants’ top two domains of interest, but no change in skills or confidence.

Conclusions:

BRAINSPaN has the potential to serve as a vehicle for the sharing and translation of knowledge in the brain impairment field. Combining other forms of dissemination with communities of practice, such as workshops and clinical mentoring, may be needed to also influence the development of skills and confidence in practice areas.

Keywords

Community of practicebrain impairmentknowledge translationmultidisciplinary collaborationclinical skills
Type
Original Article
Information
Brain Impairment , Volume 23 , Issue 2 , September 2022 , pp. 216 - 230
Copyright
© The Author(s), 2021. Published by Cambridge University Press on behalf of Australasian Society for the Study of Brain Impairment

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