According to the authors the increasing growth of the Canadian child welfare system, particularly in the number of children receiving services, warrants an examination of the effectiveness of child welfare interventions. Knowledge mobilization, they propose, is a model that allows for evidence-based practice supported by “collaborative problem-solving between researchers and decision makers” (p.3) and is most effective when research is relevant, credible, timely and emerges from partnership between researchers and decision makers.
The Batshaw-McGill Evidence-Based Management (EBM) Project is used to exemplify a current child welfare program using the knowledge mobilization model. The project was initiated to assist child welfare managers with making better use of three forms of research: service and client information systems, clinical expertise, and publications related to practice. Some of the ways the program operates is by involving university students and faculty in gathering research, holding specialized discussion groups with clinicians and researchers, and tracking client and service information and outcomes. The model has allowed managers to be more aware of trends among the children their agencies serve and to become more engaged in research related to child welfare service provision.