Stage 5 focuses on the continual, intentional sharing of CKDu research findings outside the immediate study. The i3C Working Group notes that dissemination is an ongoing duty that fosters transparency, collaboration, and ongoing learning, rather than a one-time event.
Here, dissemination differs from formal reporting or intervention planning. Reporting provides accountability results, while planning sets actions. Dissemination keeps CKDu knowledge accessible and relevant across many settings over time.
Scientific dissemination allows CKDu research to add to the collective evidence base. The i3C reports emphasize practices that enable comparing, combining, and revisiting findings as new evidence emerges. The ISN i3C Working Group also emphasizes the importance of sharing details of ongoing studies with the wider scientific community, particularly given the uncertainties and evolving evidence surrounding CKDu. Such transparency helps avoid unnecessary duplication of research and enables valuable peer input to strengthen and refine study methodologies.
Good practice includes:
- Publish results in peer-reviewed venues with enough methodological detail so others can compare across regions and study designs.
- Share protocols, analytic approaches, and data dictionaries as appropriate to support transparency and enable secondary analyses.
- Connect findings to the broader CKDu literature, directly stating how results align with or differ from other hotspots.
- Support equitable dissemination by assigning appropriate authorship and acknowledging local contributions.
- Disseminate details of ongoing research through presentations at scientific meetings, work-in-progress forums, and by uploading information to appropriate research platforms (e.g., the ISN CKDu Observatory).
At this stage, sharing with policymakers and institutions prioritizes knowledge availability over immediate action. The i3C Working Group advises that materials should raise awareness and foster discussion, rather than suggesting that the evidence demands action.
Key elements include:
- Create policy-facing summaries that clearly describe the scope and limits of current evidence, without extending beyond the supporting data.
- Design dissemination materials to fit with existing public health, occupational, and environmental information systems.
- Share findings across sectors (health, labor, environment) to foster coordinated understanding of CKDu and avoid premature policy responses.
Community dissemination here stresses access to information, not changing behavior or delivering interventions. i3C reports emphasize communities as informed partners in the CKDu knowledge network.
Approaches include:
- Prepare community-accessible summaries of research findings that explain what researchers studied and what they learned, while clearly communicating the remaining uncertainties.
- Use dissemination formats that match cultural and linguistic needs, as researchers determine in collaboration with local partners.
- Create opportunities for dialogue and questions, recognizing dissemination as an iterative and relational process rather than a one-way exchange.
- Avoid using dissemination approaches that stigmatize individuals, occupations, or communities, especially when evidence remains preliminary.
The i3C Working Group stresses that CKDu research is most valuable when findings from different studies and areas are combined. Therefore, Stage 5 emphasizes ongoing collaboration and shared learning.
This can be supported by:
- Contributing study outputs to regional or international CKDu research networks and repositories to enable cross-site synthesis.
- Sharing methodological lessons, challenges, and adaptations to inform future research efforts in similar settings.
- Treating dissemination as a dynamic process and remaining open to updating interpretations as new data and methods emerge.