Table 2 Interview topics and related interview questions. The left column gives an overview of the interview topics. The right column shows the questions asked during the interviews relating to the topics

Occupation of interviewee and general information

- → Please describe your current occupation

- → Please describe your organisation:

 • → Which role(s) does your organisation play within the Dutch public health sector?

 • → What does your organisation want to achieve and why?

Searching for information

- → In what situations do you need information?

- → Do you consider searching for information to be one of your key tasks?

 • → How do you think others perceive your tasks?

- → If you search for information, what sources do you use?

- → What kind of information are you mostly searching for (thematic, methodological, other)?

- → What criteria do you use for assessing the information you need? (What makes information useful for you/your organisation?)

- → Are there other organisations that make information ready for use?

 • → What kind of organisations and what exactly do they do?

- → What do you think of the available information? (quality, access,…)

 • → To what extent do you/does your organisation have influence on the availability and type of available information? Why?

- → How do you think the process of searching for information could be made easier?

Processing information

- → Generally, for what do you use the information obtained? Why?

- → How important is the information for you/your organisation? What factors influence this?

- → Do you (or others) need to adapt the obtained information before you can use it?

- → Who else uses this information (within and outside your organisation)?

Producing information

- → In what situation are you/is your organisation involved in producing information? Please describe the process:

 • → By whom (if applicable) are you involved?

 • → For what reason and in what stage of information production are you involved?

 • → What kind of information?

- → What do you consider to be your responsibilities regarding producing information?

 • → Is it one of your key tasks?

 • → How do you think others perceive your role in producing information?

- → Do you/does your organisation also collect or produce information for others? Why? What kind of information? Please describe such a situation:

- → Do other organisations expect you to produce information? Why? What organisations?

- → If you produce information for others, for whom and how are the others involved?

Sharing information

- → If you produce information for others, how is it used by others, and by whom?

 • → What is your influence on the use of information by others? Why? Would you like to have more influence?

- → Do you ever transfer information produced by others, to others? Please describe such a situation:

 • → What exactly did you do? What steps did you take?

 • → What factors facilitated this information-sharing process?

- → Do you think others expect you to share information?

Knowledge exchange in general

- → Generally speaking, how would you describe knowledge exchange within the Dutch public health sector?

 • → What factors influence it and how?

- → What should be done by whom to improve knowledge exchange?

 • → What is needed? (structures, competencies …)?

 • → What role could you play in this?

- → What do you consider to be knowledge?

- → What else would you like to mention regarding knowledge exchange within the Dutch public health sector?