Navigating Knowledge Translation in Health and Care

Dr Sarah Hunter is a Senior Research Fellow in the Caring Futures Institute, Flinders University, South Australia. Dr Hunter is a social psychologist and implementation scientist, and she applies her knowledge translation and implementation skills to shape an evidence-informed Early Years System in Australia that engages and supports parents and caregivers. Her research focuses on understanding the complex and diverse ways in which caregivers enact child rearing and how they navigate services and support. This program of research intersects implementation science as it explores facilitating and implementing evidence into complex multi-sector systems, with a focus on the contextual and recipient factors that influence success.

Dr Michael Lawless is a Senior Research Fellow in the Caring Futures Institute, College of Nursing and Health Sciences, Flinders University, South Australia. Dr Lawless is a social psychologist and health services researcher, focusing on self-care and supporting healthy ageing in primary care. He has authored over 40 articles addressing critical issues in healthy ageing and knowledge translation. Dr Lawless investigates the intersection of transdisciplinary research collaboration and knowledge translation in order to enhance healthcare practices and outcomes, particularly in the context of community-dwelling older adults with chronic health conditions.

Professor Alison Kitson served as inaugural Vice President and Executive Dean of the College of Nursing and Health Sciences at Flinders University, South Australia, from 2017 to 2024 and as foundational Director of the Caring Futures Institute from 2019-2024. In her academic and research role, she is recognised internationally as a leading research translation scientist, nurse leader and champion of improving person-centred fundamental care research and practice. She has held several joint appointments between academia and practice in both the UK and Australia. She co-authored Implementing Evidence-Based Practice in Healthcare (Harvey G. and Kitson A., 2015), has published over 300 peer reviewed articles and book chapters in top nursing and translational science journals and is ranked in the top 2% of most cited researchers in her field in the world. In 2015 she was elected a Fellow of the Australian Academy of Health and Medical Science (AAHMS) and in 2022 she was awarded a Distinguished Matthew Flinders Professorship from Flinders University. She has several international and Australian visiting professorships and honorary doctorates from Sweden and Denmark. In 2025 she was inducted into the Sigma Theta Tau International (STTI) Research Hall of Fame for her transformational research in person-centred fundamental care and knowledge translation.