QUERI – Quality Enhancement Research Initiative

Center for Evaluation and Implementation Resources

Overview

The Center for Evaluation and Implementation Resources (CEIR) is a QUERI resource center designed to provide time-sensitive consultation and support to VA operational leaders on evaluation and implementation methods to enable scale up and spread of policies and clinical practices aligned with one or more of the five VA priorities (Greater Choice for Veterans, Modernize Our Systems, Focus Resources More Efficiently, Improve Timeliness of Services, Suicide Prevention).

To address these priorities, CEIR provides a centralized source of products and services to allow VA policymakers, managers and research to:

• Identify optimal implementation strategies to deploy evidence-based practices at a national level across multiple sites and settings
• Develop sustainable implementation strategies (or in some cases, to de-implement low-value care) for long-term change in provider behavior
• Link to a coordinated network of evaluation and implementation experts for support

CEIR was launched in 2017 as part of an integrated QUERI effort to enable the rapid implementation of research evidence into routines VA clinical practice. CEIR’s efforts and activities are designed to support four goals:

1. Offer ongoing continuing education in evaluation and implementation science
2. Provide a location for sharing best practices in evaluation and implementation science
3. Deliver brief consultations related to program evaluation and implementation
4. Create linkages between operational leaders, front-line providers, and VA researchers to support collaborative efforts to address areas of VA care priority

CEIR also works to support the activities of the Implementation Research Group (IRG). The IRG is a national learning collaborative of nearly 300 VA and non-VA members. The IRG’s activities include monthly cyber seminars, community of practice calls, and five specialty working groups related to different implementation approaches and strategies:

• Adaptation, Fidelity, and Tailoring
• Advancing Implementation Science (theories and frameworks)
• Implementation Facilitation
• Qualitative Comparative Analysis
• Audit with Feedback

The IRG also has a VA Pulse website which houses the calendar for IRG activities as well as detailed notes and archives from all monthly seminars, calls, and sub-group activities. Please note that you need a VA e-mail address to register and sign in to access any VA Pulse site: https://www.vapulse.net/groups/implementation-research-group

CEIR Director:
Nick Bowersox, PhD, ABPP
Nicholas.Bowersox@va.gov

For more information about the IRG, Please contact: Christine Kowalski, MPH
Implementation Resource Specialist
Christine.Kowalski@va.gov

For general information about CEIR, please contact: Veronica Williams, MPH
CEIR Program Manager
Veronica.Williams9@va.gov