JUNE – AUGUST 2023
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We open a unit that aims to contribute to increasing the global impact of the IECS through the development of various communication strategies and materials.
In a well-known lecture he gave in Cambridge in 1959, the British physicist, novelist and civil servant Charles Percy Snow postulated that there were two cultures, that of the world of science and that of literature, which were separated by an “abyss of mutual incomprehension.” . The echoes of that dissertation resonated for decades and justified the efforts and initiatives to popularize scientific knowledge, democratize access to the production of laboratories and academies, and promote informed decision-making.
In the specific field of public health, the “abyss of incomprehension” takes on other nuances and can express the gap between research findings in that field and their effective appropriation by decision-makers, health professionals and the community in general. The consequences are not free. It has been estimated that the routine adoption of knowledge generated in studies can take up to 17 years, with what this implies in terms of missed opportunities, years of healthy life lost or poorly invested health resources.
At the IECS, we have always been sensitive to the idea of building bridges between evidence and public health practices and policies to promote efficiency and effectiveness. And, to enhance this task, this year we reformulated our classic institutional Communication Unit and decided to create, in parallel, a new area: the Knowledge Dissemination and Impact Unit (UDIC), which better accounts for the breadth of its objectives and Its mission is to contribute to increasing the global impact of the IECS through the development of various communication strategies and actions.
Inspired by this purpose, collecting the experience of the path traveled and adapting our messages to the modern dynamics of communication and even to the demands of the funders themselves, this brand new Unit is dedicated to deploying multiple actions, from press campaigns in different countries of Latin America to participation in research projects, the preparation of yearbooks, the development of visual abstracts and infographics that illustrate the results of studies and papers, the writing and editing of posts on social networks aimed at scientific production and the making of videos with our research staff.
We are the same, but we are different. We renew ourselves. We want to be a “powerhouse” that generates products and actions to disseminate IECS research and initiatives to the target audience of our organization, as well as the stories of those who carry them out, helping from our place to transform reality with vocation, with enthusiasm. and with creativity.
Lic. Mariana Comolli, coordinator of the Knowledge Dissemination and Impact Unit (UDIC) of the IECS.