Knowledge translation is a dynamic iterative process that includes the synthesis, dissemination, exchange and ethically sound application of knowledge to improve the health of people, provide more effective health services and products and strengthen the healthcare system,1 or it is any process that contributes to the effectiveness and timely incorporation of evidence-based information into the practices of health professionals in such a way as to effect optimal healthcare outcomes and maximise the potential of the healthcare system.2

These two definitions, with only a minimal difference between them, were stated at a consensus conference in May 2007 in North America, a gathering supported by the Society for Academic Emergency Medicine there; its proceedings were published just 3 months ago.

The conference noted that knowledge translation—or “KT” as it is known to the cognoscenti—has arisen …