Planning Knowledge Sharing in the Context of a Health Impact Assessment

The health impact assessment (HIA) process involves a variety of sectors other than the health sector and is intended to inform decision making. Considering knowledge sharing is therefore indispensable to maximizing the chances that the recommendations that result from the HIA are relevant and taken into account.

Those in charge of the HIA must be able to organize appropriate knowledge-sharing activities, taking into account stakeholder profiles, the decision-making context and the resources available.

In this briefing note, we first address the importance of knowledge sharing in the context of HIAs, and our preference for the term sharing rather than transfer of knowledge. Then, we propose and outline a framework borrowed from John Lavis and colleagues (2003), in order to guide the reader in developing a knowledge-sharing plan. The framework is structured around five simple questions to ask oneself: With whom is the knowledge to be shared? What is being shared? Who is sharing it? How? And For what purpose?