Identifying facilitators and barriers to implementing the Say Something Anonymous Reporting System in Miami-Dade County, USA: a qualitative study.

Background: Multiple anonymous reporting systems (ARS) have been implemented to prevent school violence and improve school climate. This study examines the facilitators and barriers to implementation and the role and usability of the Say Something Anonymous Reporting System (SS-ARS).

Methods: 10 qualitative interviews with key staff and administrators from intervention schools in the Miami-Dade County School District were conducted between July and December 2020. Using a thematic framework analysis of interview transcripts, we identified major themes related to the SS-ARS.

Results: Students used the SS-ARS to report issues related to violence, mental health and substance use. The SS-ARS provided training and safe reporting channels, enabling prompt responses from administrators. Successful anonymous reporting system implementation requires ongoing training for students and personnel, a multidisciplinary response team and integration into a comprehensive school safety effort.

Conclusion: Our study highlights key facilitators and barriers to implementing ARS in schools, offering three takeaways for practitioners: (1) include ongoing training for students and personnel, (2) establish a multidisciplinary team to respond to reports and integrate ARS into a comprehensive safety effort and (3) encourage reporting on a range of concerns. Interviews were conducted with school personnel, with findings primarily reflecting their perspectives, thereby limiting the ability to generalise the findings to students. Although conducted in schools within Miami-Dade County, an urban US county, the findings may be relevant for practitioners implementing ARS or similar initiatives in educational settings globally, given the ubiquity of violence and mental health issues among adolescents.