Global implementation research and applications最新文献

In 2019, Norwegian implementation researchers formed a network to promote implementation research and practice in the Norwegian context. On November 19th, 2021, the second annual Norwegian implementation conference was held in Oslo. Ninety participants from all regions of the country gathered to showcase the frontiers of Norwegian implementation research. The conference also hosted a panel discussion about critical next steps for implementation science in Norway. The conference included 17 presentations from diverse disciplines within health and welfare services, including schools. The themes presented included stakeholder engagement, implementation mechanisms, evaluations of the implementation of specific interventions, the use of implementation guidelines and frameworks, the development and validation of implementation measurements, and barriers and facilitators for implementation. The panel discussion highlighted several critical challenges with the implementation of evidence-informed practices in Norway, including limited implementation competence and capacity among practice leaders and workforces, few opportunities for education in implementation science, limited implementation research in the Norwegian context, scarce funding possibilities for implementation research, and a lack of long-term perspectives on implementation processes. Overall, the 2021 Norwegian implementation conference showed an encouraging sign of a maturing field of science in Norway. The more voluminous proceedings from the 2020 conference called for several important advancements to improve implementation science and practice in Norway, and the 2021 conference indicates that steps have already been taken in favorable directions in terms of, for instance, research designs and measurements. However, there are still unexploited potentials for improvements in implementation research, funding, policies, and practice. Norwegian implementation researcher should be mindful of the challenges and potential pitfalls implementation science currently face as a scientific discipline.

Supplementary information: The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1007/s43477-022-00069-w.

Depression is highly prevalent and, when comorbid with other medical conditions, can worsen health outcomes. Implementing routine depression screening within medical clinics can ensure that patients receive suitable treatment and improve overall health outcomes. Unfortunately, depression screening within medical settings is rare, particularly in low- and middle-income countries. This qualitative study evaluated patient and clinician perspectives on implementing depression screening within HIV and diabetes clinics in Botswana. Seven clinicians and 23 patients within these clinics were purposively selected and interviewed using a guide informed by the Consolidated Framework for Implementation Research (CFIR) to understand barriers and facilitators to depression screening in medical clinics in Botswana. Interviews were recorded, transcribed, and analyzed using NVivo. Three general themes emerged: (1) Appropriateness and Acceptability: attitudes and beliefs from clinicians and patients about whether depression screening should occur in this setting; (2) Stigma as an important barrier: the need to address the negative associations with depression to facilitate screening; and (3) Recommendations to facilitate screening including improving knowledge and awareness about depression, offering incentives to complete the screening, providing staff training, ensuring resources for treatment, the need to preserve confidentiality, and utilizing leadership endorsement. These results offer insights into how to implement depression screening within medical clinics in Botswana. These results can help design implementation strategies to increase depression screening in these clinics, which can be tested in future studies.

Supplementary information: The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1007/s43477-022-00062-3.

On a global scale, implementation science has developed considerably as a discipline in recent years. In German-speaking countries, the field has been gaining significance as well, but respective efforts in building capacity and advancing the research infrastructure are still rare. The present study investigates barriers and facilitators for conducting implementation science in German-speaking countries with the goal of formulating recommendations for creating a more supportive research infrastructure. We conducted an interview study with nine well-established implementation researchers affiliated with universities in Austria, Germany, or Switzerland. The interviews were held via Zoom or phone in November and December 2020, transcribed verbatim and analyzed using thematic analysis. Barriers that relate to characteristics of the discipline were difficulties in building a common understanding of the field and the complexity of implementation research projects. Although supportive scientific networks were important facilitators, interviewees mentioned challenges in connecting with likeminded researchers. A further barrier was the lack of opportunities for education and training in implementation science, especially in the German language. Also, participants reported a missing readiness in academia for establishing implementation science that should be addressed by advocacy of the discipline toward academic decision makers. Moreover, since most national funding agencies prioritize basic research over applied research, some interviewees named flexibility in handling research funds as a facilitator for implementation research. The results inform an agenda for promoting implementation science in German-speaking countries and can be beneficial to other countries that are currently advancing their implementation research capacity and infrastructure.

Supplementary information: The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1007/s43477-022-00046-3.

The sudden onset of COVID-19 forced mental health therapists to rapidly transition to telehealth services. While some therapists and organizations were able to achieve an expeditious transition, others struggled. Using the Exploration, Preparation, Implementation, and Sustainment (EPIS) framework, which outlines key phases that guide the implementation process, the current mixed methods study examined what factors predicted the transition to internet-based Parent-Child Interaction Therapy (iPCIT), a telehealth-delivered evidence-based practice (EBP). We investigated two areas related to the transition: (1) if PCIT therapists transitioned to provide iPCIT and (2) if they made this transition quickly. In Fall 2019, 324 therapists completed a survey about implementing PCIT. After stay-at-home orders, 223 of those therapists completed a follow-up survey about their transition to telehealth, organizational characteristics, their caseloads, and telehealth training. The majority of therapists (82%) transitioned to provide iPCIT, with 48% making the transition in less than a week. Open-ended responses indicated that therapists who did not transition-faced challenges related to limited client resources, a lack of training, and organizational delays. Qualitative findings informed predictors for two logistic regression models that are statistical models that predict the probability of an event occurring, with criterion variables (1) whether therapists transitioned to provide iPCIT and (2) whether they transitioned in less than a week. Results showed that caseload in Fall 2019 and receipt of iPCIT training were associated with iPCIT transition. Organizational setting, resiliency, and baseline caseload predicted rapid transition to iPCIT. Implications regarding supporting the implementation of telehealth delivery of EBPs are discussed.

Self-management in chronic kidney disease (CKD) can slow disease progression; however, there are few tools available to support patients with early CKD. My Kidneys My Health is a patient-focused electronic health (eHealth) self-management tool developed by patients and caregivers. This study will investigate the implementation of My Kidneys My Health across primary care and general nephrology clinics. The study aims to: (1) identify and address barriers and facilitators that may impact implementation and sustainability of the website into routine clinical care; (2) evaluate implementation quality to inform spread and scale-up. We will conduct a multi-stage approach using qualitative methods, guided by the Quality Implementation Framework and using a qualitative content analysis approach. First, we will identify perceived barriers and facilitators to implementation and considerations for sustainability through interviews with clinicians, based on the Readiness Thinking Tool and the Long Term Success Tool. Analysis will be guided by the Consolidated Framework for Implementation Research and the Theoretical Domains Framework. Appropriate implementation strategies will be identified using the Expert Recommendations for Implementing Change compilation, and implementation plans will be developed based on Proctor's recommendations and the Action, Actor, Context, Target, Time framework. Finally, we will explore implementation quality guided by the RE-AIM framework. There is limited literature describing systematic approaches to implementing and sustaining patient-focused self-management tools into clinical care, in addition to employing tailored implementation strategies to promote adoption and sustainability. We aim to generate insights on how My Kidneys My Health can be integrated into clinical care and how to sustain use of patient-centric eHealth tools in clinical settings on a larger scale.

Supplementary information: The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1007/s43477-022-00038-3.

Introduction: The involvement of private hospitals in Tuberculosis care in Uganda is still limited. There is a lack of literature about the barriers and motivators to private hospitals' engagement in Tuberculosis care in Uganda.

Objective: To explore the barriers to and motivators of private hospitals' engagement in Tuberculosis care.

Methods: The study employed a qualitative study design that utilized in-depth interviews with 13 private healthcare workers purposively selected in June 2020 due to their active involvement in Tuberculosis care from four urban private hospitals in Mbarara Municipality. An inductive, content analytic approach framed by the Consolidated Framework for Implementation Research, was used for analysis. The interviews were transcribed and coded to identify key themes using content analysis.

Results: Focusing through the Consolidated Framework for Implementation Research, barriers to private hospitals' engagement were related to cost, external policies and incentives, structure characteristics, networks and communications, and knowledge and beliefs about the intervention. These include concerns regarding the payment of care by patients; indirect income-generating nature of Tuberculosis management; lack of drugs, registers, and diagnostic tools; lack of accreditation from the Ugandan Ministry of Health; limited space for keeping Tuberculosis patients; lack of proper follow-up mechanism; lack of training and qualified human resources; and delayed seeking of health care by the patients. Perceived high quality of care in the private hospitals; privacy and confidentiality concerns; proximity of private hospitals to patients; and formalization of partnerships between private hospitals and the government were the motivators that arose from the three constructs (relative advantage, patient needs, and resources, and engaging).

Conclusion: The engagement of private hospitals in Tuberculosis care requires commitment from key stakeholders supplemented with the organizational shared beliefs towards this change. There is a need for ensuring mechanisms for lessening these barriers to ensure full engagement of private hospitals in Tuberculosis care.

Organizational context (e.g., climate, culture, resources) can impede or enhance implementation of evidence-based practices in general education settings or special education settings serving students with autism spectrum disorder. We examined the relations between organizational context and individual (i.e., implementation leadership, administrator- or service provider-role) or school (i.e., enrollment size, public/nonpublic school type) characteristics. Participants were administrative or service providing leaders (n = 34) from 11 schools in one state on the East Coast of the United States. School leaders' average ratings of the organizational context were generally more positive for special education than general education; however, greater culture stress was reported for special education. Correlation analyses indicated being an administrator and implementation leadership were positively associated with implementation climate in both education settings. Being an administrator was also positively associated with cultural effort (i.e., how hard people work towards achieving goals) in special education, but negatively associated with culture stress in general education. In special education, nonpublic schools had better climates (both learning and implementation), but more culture stress. Additionally, school enrollment size was negatively related to available resources and implementation climate in special education. Investigating the similarities and differences in organizational context across educational settings is needed in future research.

Real-world application and implementation of evidence-based practice continue to be a challenge across multiple sectors, including behavioral health settings. Providing the opportunity for future researchers and practitioners to gain capacity and knowledge through structured experiential learning in implementation science is critical to closing the research to practice gap. The Institute for Translational Research Education in Adolescent Drug Abuse (ITRE) is a graduate certificate program that offers specific coursework, a large-scale service-learning project based in the community, and mentorship related to implementation science research and practice. The purpose of this evaluation was to examine, from the perspective of ITRE scholars, the perceived impact on the development of professional research and practice skills once graduated from the ITRE program. Fifty-eight semi-structured interviews across five cohorts were selected randomly for in-depth thematic analysis (n = 58). Results suggest that the ITRE provides a unique approach grounded in implementation science for building robust and transferable skills for future researchers and practitioners working in a variety of behavioral healthcare settings.

Background: It is now widely understood that successful implementation of evidence-based treatments is facilitated by several favorable conditions (e.g., community buy-in, invested agency leadership). However, strategies for supporting agencies in promoting these conditions have been examined to a lesser extent. In this exploratory study, the implementation support procedures of Parenting with Love and Limits (PLL), an evidence-informed family treatment for child/adolescent behavior problems in which the training team follows structured procedures to help coordinate implementation support activities, are illustrated, and their preliminary effectiveness examined.

Methods: PLL documents and communication records between PLL and n = 23 sites across the U.S. that initiated PLL pre-implementation activities were reviewed. In addition, implementation activities completed for each agency were entered into the Stages of Implementation Completion (SIC) dashboard.

Results: The prescriptive nature of the PLL implementation support protocol was illustrated through descriptions of procedural documents and case examples. Quantitative analyses revealed that, among the 23 sites that began pre-implementation, 9 discontinued, with a trend toward sites in metropolitan areas being more likely to discontinue than those in less populous areas. In addition, the 14 sites that launched PLL demonstrated a high amount of consistency in activities, with sites in the sustainability phase completing an average of 86% of implementation behaviors.

Conclusions: Training team-coordination of implementation activities may be one promising approach for supporting agencies in completing tasks to facilitate successful uptake of evidence-supported interventions. In turn, sustained implementation of evidence-supported treatments could allow communities to benefit from practice innovations to a greater extent.