Development of the Learning Health Systems Toolkit: A Collaborative Effort to Bridge Concept and Practice.

Abstract

Learning communities need access to resources to support efforts in building and sustaining learning health systems. This experience report details our development and initial assessments of the Learning Health System (LHS) Toolkit, a menu of resources purpose-designed to support users to build more proactive, responsive, and equitable systems of care by developing, implementing and sustaining LHSs. Toolkit development began in 2022, and the current version was completed in 2025. To optimize knowledge translation, we structured our methods to align with the phases of the Knowledge to Action (KTA) Model, including (1) Knowledge Inquiry; (2) Synthesis and Creation; (3) Knowledge Selection; (4) Adapting Knowledge to Local Context; (5) Assessing Barriers and Facilitators to Knowledge Use; (6) Selecting, Tailoring, and Implementing the Intervention, and (7) Monitoring Knowledge Use. Development of the web-based toolkit and vetting of its contents were achieved over several phases. Feedback from toolkit users was positive overall and was integral to its development and refinement. Users from 72 countries have accessed the toolkit, although most engagement has occurred in high-income countries, chiefly the US, UK, Türkiye, Australia, Canada, The Netherlands, and New Zealand. The toolkit is uniquely situated to support learning communities. It includes a dynamic design, is regularly updated, and is accessible free of cost. Additionally, unlike a literature search, the toolkit is developed with usability in mind and includes tools beyond peer-reviewed literature, curated by LHS experts. The next steps are to develop and action a dissemination plan based on implementation science principles to increase the reach and adoption of the toolkit.