May 22, 2026
Knowledge mobilisation of dementia research in primary care: a scoping review [PROTOCOL]
- Angela Clifford1,
- Eleanor Zargham2,
- Andrew Finney1
- 1School of Nursing and Midwifery, Keele University;
- 2Impact Accelerator Unit, School of Medicine, Keele University
Protocol Citation: Angela Clifford, Eleanor Zargham, Andrew Finney 2026. Knowledge mobilisation of dementia research in primary care: a scoping review [PROTOCOL]. protocols.io https://dx.doi.org/10.17504/protocols.io.yxmvm8dbog3p/v1
Manuscript citation:
License: This is an open access protocol distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original author and source are credited
Protocol status: Working
We use this protocol and it's working
Created: May 22, 2026
Last Modified: May 22, 2026
Protocol Integer ID: 317760
Keywords: knowledge mobilisation, dementia, primary care, knowledge mobilisation of dementia research, dementia research, dementia research finding, useful for dementia research, scoping review, kmb strategy, research study, funded research study
Funders Acknowledgements:
School for Primary Care Research
Grant ID: Career Development Award
Abstract
This scoping review aims to understand what KMb strategies prove useful for dementia research in primary care and the challenges that are experienced. Understanding how dementia research findings are understood and used in primary care is important to improve the KMb strategies embedded within funded research studies.
Guidelines
We will follow the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analysis (PRISMA) guidelines (Moher et al., 2009).
Background
Dementia is a broad term for progressive decline of cognitive function that interferes with daily life. According to NHS England (2026), over 510,000 people have a recorded dementia diagnosis in primary care in England. Primary care is the first calling point for prevention, detection, referral and ongoing care of dementia through the annual dementia review and management of other long-term physical and mental health conditions. The nature of dementia calls for dementia-friendly services such as staff training, longer appointments, and often vital communication with and care for family carers.
It is crucial that primary care uses the most up to date research knowledge to continually improve services and adapt to changing care environments and demands. Understanding how primary care professionals, patients and their family carers understand and use dementia research findings and how researchers can best work with primary care systems is important to improve the ‘Knowledge Mobilisation’ (KMb) strategies embedded within funded research studies.
KMb is an active, two-way process describing “the process of moving knowledge to where it can be most useful” (Ward, 2017, p.477), ensuring the right information is shared with the right population at the right time and in the most accessible way (Levin, 2008). Development of appropriate KMb strategies helps to maximise the impact of research and timely uptake of resulting outputs and recommendations by service users, healthcare staff and commissioners.
Primary objectives
To conduct a rapid scoping review and synthesis of published research to answer the following research questions:
- What KMb strategies are recommended for use in dementia research and care?
- How are KMb strategies used in dementia research and care to inform and impact on practice in primary care?
- What KMb strategies or elements have been evaluated as being effective?
- What challenges are considered or identified when mobilising knowledge from dementia research into primary care?
Searching and screening
We will conduct a scoping search using systematic methods to identify sources relevant to the primary objectives. A scoping review aims to “identify nature and extent of research evidence” (Grant and Booth, 2009). This method will obtain a broad overview of the KMb strategies used by researchers in dementia, how well they work and the challenges experienced.
We will search multiple databases (EBSCO [incorporating CINAHL Plus, APA PsycINFO, APA PsycArticles, Medline], Web of Science and the Cochrane Library) and grey literature for relevant articles using search terms and associated MESH headings tailored to each database:
(knowledge mobili#ation OR research mobili#ation OR knowledge utili#ation OR knowledge exchange OR knowledge transfer OR knowledge translation OR knowledge broker* OR knowledge dissemination OR knowledge sharing OR co-creation OR co-design OR co-production OR communities of practice OR community of practice) AND (dementia OR Alzheimer* OR Vascular Dementia OR mild cognitive impairment OR MCI OR memory loss) AND (primary care OR primary health care OR primary healthcare OR general practice OR GP OR pharmac* OR medical practice OR family practice OR family physician OR family doctor OR outpatient)
All electronic databases will be searched from the first date available in the database until the day of the search. Backward and forward citation screening will be completed.
Inclusion criteria are papers, reports and recommendations or guidance that relate to KMb of dementia research in primary care, available in English, and providing as a minimum a description of a KMb strategy involved.
Exclusion criteria include knowledge transfer or education related to general staff training or for people living with dementia and/or family carers; a focus on residential or secondary care settings with no primary care involvement; methods mentioned as a broad recommendation for future research only; participatory research methods with no description of how they relate to a wider KMb strategy; literature review and study protocols without a description of a KMb strategy; conference abstracts; dementia included as a condition within a broader population of interest; source not accessible; and otherwise not relevant to the research questions.
Data collection process
We will export search results from databases to Rayyan software. Duplicates will be removed automatically. Title and abstract screening will be performed by reviewer 1 with a randomly selected 20% reviewed by reviewer 2. Full text screening will be conducted by reviewer 1 with a randomly selected 20% reviewed by reviewer 2. Disagreements at each stage will be resolved through discussion with reviewer 3. Extracted data will be entered into a pre-designed form.
Planned data synthesis
Extracted data will undergo a thematic analysis to identify themes according to the research objectives. A quality assessment is not always used in a scoping review and this is likely to be relevant in this review given that some of the information extracted will likely not be the focus of the paper. We will however critically analyse included sources to better understand the KMb strategies used and the evidence for their effectiveness.
Protocol references
Grant, M.J. and Booth, A. (2009). A typology of reviews: an analysis of 14 review types and associated methodologies. Health Information and Libraries Journal, 26, pp.91–108. doi: 10.1111/j.1471-1842.2009.00848.x
Levin, B. (2008). Thinking about knowledge mobilization: A discussion paper prepared at the request of the Canadian Council on Learning and the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council. Canadian Council on Learning, available from https://sshrc-crsh.gc.ca/about-au_sujet/publications/KMb_-_LevinDiscussionPaper_-_E.pdf. Accessed 15/04/2026.
Moher, D., Liberati, A., Tetzlaff, J., Altman, D.G., The PRISMA Group (2009). Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses: The PRISMA Statement. PLoS Med 6(7): e1000097. doi: 10.1371/journal.pmed.1000097
NHS England (February 2026) Primary Care Dementia Data, available from https://digital.nhs.uk/data-and-information/publications/statistical/primary-care-dementia-data/february-2026. Accessed 15/04/2026.
Ward, V. (2017). Why, whose, what and how? A framework for knowledge mobilisers. Evidence & Policy, 13(3), 477–97. doi: 10.1332/174426416X14634763278725
Acknowledgements
This scoping review is funded by the NIHR School for Primary Care Research Career Development Award (AC).