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| navigate: home: magazine: winter 1999: article | |
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Outreach is a key component of research. Here’s what three national leaders have to say about the importance of disseminating research to the public: | ||||||
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Dr. Neal F. Lane is director of the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy and assistant to the president for science and technology policy. Before assuming this post last August, he was director of the National Science Foundation (1993–98). From 1966 to 1993, he served as provost and professor of physics at Rice University. His comments are excerpted from an address he gave during a 1997 Council for Advancement and Support of Edu-cation conference. “I’m not the only one who reminisces about the golden era of science in America—the period after World War II through the ’50s and part of the ’60s. Public funding for science was generous, and a science agenda was rarely discussed. The implicit consensus was that our national security requires scientific research. “We know, in retrospect, that Americans also received enormous benefits from science, from better health to higher-paying jobs. But we never really talked much about where all these good things came from. “But it’s hardly news that the golden era is now behind us. We can no longer expect public support in the form of a blank check and an unrestricted agenda. Our task is to articulate how scarce taxpayer dollars assigned to scientific research translate into future benefits for society as a whole. “This is a crucial period of transition for academic science and engineering. We need to redouble our efforts to send a clear signal about linking our work to the concerns that face our society. “What scientists and engineers must do is convince those who support their work—the taxpayers, who are the ultimate stakeholders in this venture. But this vital contribution is not so easy to convey to an uninformed public. In our outreach work, we’re fortunate to have a huge reservoir of public curiosity to help bridge the gap. “Researchers need to develop the role of ‘civic scientist’ by engaging in genuine public dialogues with their communities. I understand well how such outreach can seem rather daunting for a scientist, but my own experience attests to the fact that it does become easier with practice. Now, I try to leave time to speak to local groups and reporters whenever I travel. “I’ll even venture to say it’s time for outreach to become a professional responsibility for scientists and engineers. Communications training must become an integral part of a scientific education. To date, preparation for research careers has not included this dimension, though most of us could use some help. “We’re not properly serving the research community or the public if we don’t help make the case about why science and technology matter in people’s lives. Given today’s budgetary climate, neither federal agencies nor the research community can afford to appear isolated from the taxpayers who pay the bills. “The climate for science has changed forever. While it’s necessary to increase public understanding of science and technology, it’s equally important for scientists to deepen their understanding of the public. This two-way communication has the promise to benefit us all.” |
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Dr. Anne C. Petersen is senior vice president for programs at the W.K. Kellogg Foundation. Its mission is “to help people help themselves through the practical application of knowledge and resources to improve their quality of life and that of future generations.” Before joining the Kellogg Foundation, she was deputy director of the National Science Foundation. She also served as vice president for research and dean of the Graduate School at the University of Minnesota. While at Penn State, Petersen was a professor, department head and dean (1987–92) of the College of Health and Human Development. “Kellogg Foundation-funded projects are directed toward solving the problems of people. We have always urged grantees to disseminate their research to the public. More recently, we’ve begun to do more of this ourselves. We’ve found it important to make sure that the whole impact of an initiative is also communicated. We see dissemination as an essential part of our programming, and we have a unit, Impact Services, that works with programming staff on communications/marketing, policy, evaluation and technology. “When research is conducted with public funds, it is essential to share the results with those who supported it. If this were done consistently, we would have much more public understanding of science, as well as more rapid use of research results. But it’s not easy to disseminate research results to the public. Results need to be in a form that the public will understand and can use. For example, putting a journal article on a Web site does little to further use of results. What is required is additional thinking and then effective translation of the results. Some scientists, such as the late Carl Sagan, are good at this, but many are not. So researchers need to partner with communications and marketing professionals who can serve as intermediaries in the dissemination process. “It’s also important to have an effective model for communicating research results to the public. Penn State has such a model. Having public relations professionals in each college provides the opportunity for these professionals to learn about the faculty and their work and keep up with what might be important to communicate to the public. “Another successful model is the College of Agricultural Sciences’ system for disseminating research and implementing practical applications through Cooperative Extension. Some fields have established partnerships with industry to achieve implementation. I think that all fields should look for partnerships to do this. The Kellogg Foundation is especially interested in communities and the well-being of the people within them. Several fields are especially relevant to community issues: all of the human sciences (psychology, sociology, human development, all health fields) and environmental and agricultural sciences, among others. There are opportunities for partnerships with communities in these fields. The model of community research centers, common in some European countries, is one way to do this. This model is just beginning to be explored in the United States.” |
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Dr. Vivian W. Pinn is the associate director for research on women’s health at the National Institutes of Health (NIH) and director of the NIH Office of Research on Women’s Health (ORWH). The ORWH, established in 1990 within the Office of the NIH Director, fosters and supports biomedical and behavioral research on diseases, disorders and conditions that affect women across the entire life span, from birth to the later years of life. One of the most significant efforts of the ORWH has been to identify areas of women’s health that require further research and to establish a comprehensive agenda for women’s health research supported by the NIH. The office also has a mandate to ensure that women are adequately represented in biomedical and biobehavioral research supported by the NIH. In addition to serving as a focal point for women’s health research at the NIH, the ORWH works to encourage girls and young women to pursue biomedical careers and to advance in those careers. Before joining the NIH, Pinn was professor and chair of the Department of Pathology in the College of Medicine at Howard University (1982–91). She received her medical degree in 1967 from the University of Virginia School of Medicine and is a graduate of Wellesley College, where she currently serves on the Board of Trustees. “What drives women’s health research is the need to fill in the gaps in knowledge that prevent the biomedical community from fully understanding the health of women and the conditions or diseases that affect them. In addition, women themselves often have questions, such as ‘Should I use hormone replacement therapy? How can I prevent heart disease? What can I do to preserve my health? What treatments are best for my disease?’ We often don’t have answers to all of these questions, but we are seeking the answers through biomedical and behavioral research. “The Office of Research on Women’s Health was created to ensure that biomedical research involves women and addresses their health needs, so that knowledge gaps can be closed and questions about women’s health, as well as sex and gender issues in health and disease, can be addressed through scientific investigation. Conducting research on women’s health is just part of the process. It is equally important to disseminate the knowledge derived from research to at least two groups that can and should benefit from such research: health care professionals and women. “Health care professionals need to be aware of the most recent scientific findings that can influence or determine how they approach the health of their patients and provide state-of-the-art prevention and treatment methods. We know from studies of breast cancer survival rates, hysterectomy rates and other women’s health conditions, as examples, that outcomes may vary across the country. One contributing factor in these differences may be that some of the new methods for treating breast cancer aren’t being used everywhere or that public health policies or practice standards may vary. By assuring the dissemination of research outcomes, each health professional should be better prepared to render the best available care to his or her patients. Furthermore, women need to know about new knowledge resulting from research so that they can protect their own health and that of their families by making adjustments in diet, exercise and other lifestyle choices. They also need this knowledge to help them know what questions to ask their doctors and what their expectations should be from their medical care. “At the National Institutes of Health, public information and liaison components are integral to all of the NIH institutes and centers, as well as other offices, such as ORWH, to ensure that new health-related knowledge is communicated to people in language that they can understand. For example, the National Cancer Institute has translated much of its information into Spanish, and the National Institute of Arthritis and Musculoskeletal and Skin Diseases has wonderful brochures on autoimmune diseases written in lay language, such as “What Black Women Should Know About Lupus.” “Many of the NIH publications on women’s health issues and research are written for nonscientists. In addition, the ORWH Web site (http://www4.od.nih.gov/orwh/nihpubs.html) contains a list of publications from across the NIH that focus on women’s health issues, in order to provide a central source for public consumption. Our outreach efforts also include participating in professional and scientific meetings and health fairs and speaking to many women’s community groups and organizations. We also make it an office priority to reach out to communities of women who may have had less access to research outcomes or participation, such as minority women or women with disabilities. I believe that one of our most valuable contributions is talking with women to assure them that research is addressing their health concerns and finding answers to improve their health and health care and that the role of women as volunteers in clinical research is appreciated.” |
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