Table 3 Summary and quote examples of themes enhancing “capacity” for research use

Value of research

Value of research is present among individuals and organizations whether research evidence was used or not

“It’s pretty important to have it…[and] that’s pretty clear for us at that whole board. One of the things we wanted to do was to make sure that every decision that we made was as evidence-based as it could be.”

Skills and knowledge

Healthcare providers’ familiarity with interpreting research enhanced capacity

“Having two physicians, one in the House and one in the Senate, to, you know, help write the policy, and then also you are the primary advocates for it in the legislature was very helpful because it brought subject matter expertise… As scientists and physicians, we are trained to solve the problem using data, research and trial and error.”

Resources to access research

Emphasis on recognizing publicly accessible research resources as opposed to private sources for research evidence

“[H]e starts his PubMed searches and things like that to find out who’s got published data on any given topic… he’s on the editorial board for APhA [American Pharmacists Association]’s journal.”

Staff and manpower

Staff and students enhance potential for using research

“[A]s far as actually doing the research or getting the research, a lot of that was done by board staff and if we had P4 pharmacy students on rotation at the time…the board itself relied heavily on board staff to do a lot of that research and present the findings.”