Blending research, service and cost-effectiveness in prevention: What helps and what hinders?

This study reports on a survey of concerns held by service providers and researchers about conducting research on the efficacy and cost-effectiveness of mental health preventive interventions. There were 41 service providers from three midwestern states and 18 active prevention researchers from across the country. Both groups strongly supported the expenditure of resources on this type of collaboration. They indicated that data from well-designed studies could be used to identify cost effective interventions, set a more concrete basis for funding, and help determine where scarce resources could best be used. Some important resistances and differences in perspective also were found. The time seems ripe, however, to coalesce groups of professionals with common interests in prevention and enable the blending of research and service skills for program improvement and cost-effectiveness.