Policy briefs 101: A guide for translating research findings into policy impact

UCLA CTSI's Community Engagement and Research Program (CERP) now offers a free video, Policy Briefs 101, and a quick-reference handout, to guide you in disseminating your work and translating your project or research findings into policy briefs. The training material is designed for community-partnered researchers and community-based organizations and anyone interested in improving the policy impact of their work. 

Key points include:

• Plan for 6-8 weeks for writing/editing
• Obtain diverse feedback (from staff, faculty, and stakeholders)
• For dissemination, think outside the box about the audience -- consider ethnic media, local news sources, reporters interested in the topic, community-based organizations interested in this field, giving lay language presentations to communities/organizations
• Good graphic design takes time, deadlines can prove useful
• Promote accessibility in reports, lay communications, and manuscripts
• Avoid lingo

For questions, please contact CERP@mednet.ucla.edu