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Implementation Science at UW

Keywords: Scale-Up

✪ Scaling-up and scaling-out the Systems Analysis and Improvement Approach to optimize the hypertension diagnosis and care cascade for HIV infected individuals (SCALE SAIA-HTN): a stepped-wedge cluster randomized trial

Authors:

Carmen E. Hazim , Igor Dobe, Stephen Pope, Kristjana H. Ásbjörnsdóttir, Orvalho Augusto, Fernando Pereira Bruno, Sergio Chicumbe, Norberto Lumbandali, Inocêncio Mate, Elso Ofumhan, Sam Patel, Riaze Rafik, Kenneth Sherr, Veronica Tonwe, Onei Uetela, David Watkins, Sarah Gimbel, & Ana O. Mocumbi

University of Washington affiliated authors are displayed in bold.

✪ Open Access

Published: March 2024

Read the full text in the open access journal Implementation Science Communication

Abstract:

Background

Undiagnosed and untreated hypertension is a main driver of cardiovascular disease and disproportionately affects persons living with HIV (PLHIV) in low- and middle-income countries. Across sub-Saharan Africa, guideline application to screen and manage hypertension among PLHIV is inconsistent due to poor service readiness, low health worker motivation, and limited integration of hypertension screening and management within HIV care services. In Mozambique, where the adult HIV prevalence is over 13%, an estimated 39% of adults have hypertension. As the only scaled chronic care service in the county, the HIV treatment platform presents an opportunity to standardize and scale hypertension care services.
Low-cost, multi-component systems-level strategies such as the Systems Analysis and Improvement Approach (SAIA) have been found effective at integrating hypertension and HIV services to improve the effectiveness of hypertension care delivery for PLHIV, reduce drop-offs in care, and improve service quality. To build off lessons learned from a recently completed cluster randomized trial (SAIA-HTN) and establish a robust evidence base on the effectiveness of SAIA at scale, we evaluated a scaled-delivery model of SAIA (SCALE SAIA-HTN) using existing district health management structures to facilitate SAIA across six districts of Maputo Province, Mozambique.

Methods

This study employs a stepped-wedge design with randomization at the district level. The SAIA strategy will be “scaled up” with delivery by district health supervisors (rather than research staff) and will be “scaled out” via expansion to Southern Mozambique, to 18 facilities across six districts in Maputo Province. SCALE SAIA-HTN will be introduced over three, 9-month waves of intensive intervention, where technical support will be provided to facilities and district managers by study team members from the Mozambican National Institute of Health. Our evaluation of SCALE SAIA-HTN will be guided by the RE-AIM framework and will seek to estimate the budget impact from the payer’s perspective.

Discussion

SAIA packages user-friendly systems engineering tools to support decision-making by frontline health workers and to identify low-cost, contextually relevant improvement strategies. By integrating SAIA delivery into routine management structures, this pragmatic trial will determine an effective strategy for national scale-up and inform program planning.

**This abstract is posted with permission under the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License**

✪ Implementation fidelity to HIV assisted partner services (aPS) during scale-up in western Kenya: a convergent mixed methods study

Authors:

Beatrice Wamuti, Mercy Owuor, Wenjia Liu, David Katz, Harison Lagat, George Otieno, Edward Kariithi, Paul Macharia, Sarah Masyuko, Mary Mugambi, Carey Farquhar & Bryan Weiner

University of Washington affiliated authors are displayed in bold.

✪ Open Access

Published: May 2023

Read the full text in the open access journal BMC Health Services Research

Abstract:

Background

HIV assisted partner services (aPS) is an intervention to improve HIV status awareness among sex and drug-injecting partners of people newly diagnosed with HIV (index clients). Implementation fidelity—the degree to which an intervention is conducted as intended – is critical to effectiveness, but there are limited data about aPS fidelity when delivered by HIV testing service (HTS) providers. We explored factors affecting implementation fidelity to aPS in two high-HIV prevalence counties in western Kenya.

Methods

We used convergent mixed methods adapting the conceptual framework for implementation fidelity within the aPS scale-up project. This was an implementation study examining scale-up of APS within HTS programs in Kisumu and Homa Bay counties that recruited male sex partners (MSPs) of female index clients. We defined implementation fidelity as the extent to which HTS providers followed the protocol for phone and in-person participant tracing at six expected tracing attempts. Quantitative data were collected from tracing reports in 31 facilities between November 2018 and December 2020, and in-depth interviews (IDIs) were conducted with HTS providers. Descriptive statistics were used to describe tracing attempts. IDIs were analyzed using thematic content analysis.

Results

Overall, 3017 MSPs were mentioned of whom 98% (2969/3017) were traced, with most tracing attempts being successful (2831/2969, 95%). Fourteen HTS providers participated in the IDIs—mostly females (10/14, 71%) with a median age of 35 years (range 25–52), who all had post-secondary education (14/14, 100%). The proportion of tracing attempts occurring by phone ranged from 47 to 66%, with the highest proportion occurring on the first attempt and lowest on the sixth attempt. Contextual factors either enhanced or impeded implementation fidelity to aPS. Positive provider attitudes towards aPS and conducive work environment factors promoted implementation fidelity, while negative MSP responses and challenging tracing conditions impeded it.

Conclusion

Interactions at the individual (provider), interpersonal (client—provider), and health systems (facility) levels affected implementation fidelity to aPS. As policymakers prioritize strategies to reduce new HIV infections, our findings highlight the importance of conducting fidelity assessments to better anticipate and mitigate the impact of contextual factors during the scale-up of interventions.

**This abstract is posted with permission under the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License**

✪ Adolescent girls and young women’s PrEP-user journey during an implementation science study in South Africa and Kenya

Authors:

Elzette Rousseau , Ariana W. K. Katz, Shannon O’Rourke, Linda-Gail Bekker, Sinead Delany-Moretlwe, Elizabeth Bukusi, Danielle Travill, Victor Omollo, Jennifer F. Morton, Gabrielle O’Malley, Jessica E. Haberer, Renee Heffron, Rachel Johnson, Connie Celum, Jared M. Baeten, & Ariane van der Straten

University of Washington affiliated authors are displayed in bold.

✪ Open Access

Published: October 2021

Read the full text in the open access journal PLOS ONE
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Abstract:

Successful scale-up of PrEP for HIV prevention in African adolescent girls and young women (AGYW) requires integration of PrEP into young women’s everyday lives. We conducted interviews and focus group discussions with 137 AGYW PrEP users aged 16–25 from South Africa and Kenya. Individual and relational enablers and disablers were explored at key moments during their PrEP-user journey from awareness, initiation and early use through persistence, including PrEP pauses, restarts, and discontinuation. PrEP uptake was facilitated when offered as part of an integrated sexual reproductive health service, but hampered by low awareness, stigma and misconceptions about PrEP in the community. Daily pill-taking was challenging for AGYW due to individual, relational and structural factors and PrEP interruptions (intended or unintended) were described as part of AGYW’s PrEP-user journey. Disclosure, social support, adolescent-friendly health counseling, and convenient access to PrEP were reported as key enablers for PrEP persistence.

**This abstract is posted with permission under the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License**

✪ Adapting Caring Contacts for Veterans in a Department of Veterans Affairs Emergency Department: Results From a Type 2 Hybrid Effectiveness-Implementation Pilot Study

Authors:

Sara J. Landes, Susan M. Jegley, JoAnn E. Kirchner, John P. Areno, Jeffery A. Pitcock, Traci H. Abraham, Sacha A. McBain, R. Sonia Singh, Mary J. Bollinger, Jacob Painter, Jack A. Woods, Nyssa D. Curtis, Donald E. Jones Jr, Bridget B. Matarazzo, Mark A. Reger, and Katherine Anne Comtois

University of Washington affiliated authors are displayed in bold.

✪ Open Access

Published: October 2021

Read the full text in the open access journal Frontiers in Psychiatry
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Abstract:

Transitions in care, such as discharge from an emergency department (ED), are periods of increased risk for suicide and effective interventions that target these periods are needed. Caring Contacts is an evidence-based suicide prevention intervention that targets transitions, yet it has not been widely implemented. This pilot study adapted Caring Contacts for a Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) ED setting and population, created an implementation toolkit, and piloted implementation and evaluation of effectiveness. To inform adaptation, qualitative interviews were conducted with stakeholders. Data were used by an advisory board comprised of stakeholders, experts, and veterans to make adaptations and develop an implementation planning guide to delineate steps needed to implement. Key decisions about how to adapt Caring Contacts included recipients, author, content, and the schedule for sending. Pilot implementation occurred at one VA ED. Caring Contacts involved sending patients at risk of suicide brief, non-demanding expressions of care.

Program evaluation of the pilot used a type 2 hybrid effectiveness-implementation design to both pilot an implementation strategy and evaluate effectiveness of Caring Contacts. Evaluation included qualitative interviews with veteran patients during implementation. VA electronic health records were used to evaluate VA service utilization in the 6-month periods immediately before and after veterans were delivered their first Caring Contact. Hundred and seventy-five veterans were mailed Caring Contacts and the facility continued adoption after the pilot. Participants were positive about the intervention and reported feeling cared about and connected to VA as a result of receiving Caring Contacts. This project developed an implementation planning process that successfully implemented Caring Contacts at one site. This can be used to further implement Caring Contacts at additional VA or community EDs.

**This abstract is posted with permission under the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License**

✪ Population-based implementation of behavioral health detection and treatment into primary care: early data from New York state

Authors:

Deborah J. Bowen, Ashley Heald, Erin LePoire, Amy Jones, Danielle Gadbois, Joan Russo, & Jay Carruthers

University of Washington affiliated authors are displayed in bold.

✪ Open Access

Published: September 2021

Read the full text in the open access journal BMC Health Services Research
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Abstract:

Background

The Collaborative Care Model is a well-established, evidence-based approach to treating depression and other common behavioral health conditions in primary care settings. Despite a robust evidence base, real world implementation of Collaborative Care has been limited and very slow. The goal of this analysis is to better describe and understand the progression of implementation in the largest state-led Collaborative Care program in the nation—the New York State Collaborative Care Medicaid Program.

Data are presented using the RE-AIM model, examining the proportion of clinics in each of the model’s five steps from 2014 to 2019.

Methods

We used the RE-AIM model to shape our data presentation, focusing on the proportion of clinics moving into each of the five steps of this model over the years of implementation. Data sources included: a New York State Office of Mental Health clinic tracking database, billing applications, quarterly reports, and Medicaid claims.

Results

A total of 84% of clinics with which OMH had an initial contact [n = 611clinics (377 FQHCs and 234 non-FQHCs)] received some form of training and technical assistance. Of those, 51% went on to complete a billing application, 41% reported quarterly data at least once, and 20% were able to successfully bill Medicaid. Of clinics that reported data prior to the first quarter of 2019, 79% (n = 130) maintained Collaborative Care for 1 year or more. The receipt of any training and technical assistance was significantly associated with our implementation indices: (completed billing application, data reporting, billing Medicaid, and maintaining Collaborative Care). The average percent of patient improvement for depression and anxiety across 155 clinics that had at least one quarter of data was 44.81%. Training and technical assistance source (Office of Mental Health, another source, or both) and intensity (high/low) were significantly related to implementation indices and were observed in FQHC versus non-FQHC samples.

Conclusions

Offering Collaborative Care training and technical assistance, particularly high intensity training and technical assistance, increases the likelihood of implementation. Other state-wide organizations might consider the provision of training and technical assistance when assisting clinics to implement Collaborative Care.

**This abstract is posted with permission under the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License**

✪ Using Assisted Partner Services for HIV Testing and the Treatment of Males and Their Female Sexual Partners: Protocol for an Implementation Science Study

Authors:

Edward Kariithi, Monisha Sharma, Emily Kemunto, Harison Lagat, George Otieno, Beatrice M. Wamuti, David A. Katz, Christopher Obong'o, Paul Macharia, Rose Bosire, Sarah Masyuko, Mary Mugambi, Carol E. Levin, Wenjia Liu, Unmesha Roy Paladhi, Bryan J. Weiner, & Carey Farquhar

University of Washington affiliated authors are displayed in bold.

✪ Open Access

Published: May 2021

Read the full text in the open access journal JMIR Research Protocols
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Abstract:

Background

Despite the effective scale-up of HIV testing and treatment programs, only 75% of people living with HIV (PLWH) globally know their status, and this rate is lower among men. This highlights the importance of implementing HIV testing and linkage interventions with a high uptake in this population. In a cluster randomized controlled trial conducted in Kenya between 2013 and 2015, we found that assisted partner services (APS) for HIV-exposed partners of newly diagnosed PLWH safely reached more HIV-exposed individuals with HIV testing compared with client referral alone. However, more data are needed to evaluate APS implementation in a real-world setting.

Objective

This study aims to evaluate the effectiveness, acceptability, fidelity, and cost of APS when integrated into existing HIV testing services (HTS) in Western Kenya.

Methods

Our study team from the University of Washington and PATH is integrating APS into 31 health facilities in Western Kenya. We are enrolling females newly diagnosed with HIV (index clients) who consent to receiving APS, their male sexual partners, and female sexual partners of male sexual partners who tested HIV positive. Female index clients and sexual partners testing HIV positive will be followed up at 6 weeks, 6 months, and 12 months postenrollment to assess linkage to care, antiretroviral therapy initiation, and HIV viral load suppression. We will evaluate the acceptability, fidelity, and cost of real-world implementation of APS via in-depth interviews conducted with national, county, and subcounty-level policy makers responsible for HTS. Facility health staff providing HTS and APS, in addition to staff working with the study project team, will also be interviewed. We will also conduct direct observations of facility infrastructure and clinical procedures and extract data from the facilities and county and national databases.

Results

As of March 2020, we have recruited 1724 female index clients, 3201 male partners, and 1585 female partners. We have completed study recruitment as well as 6-week (2936/2973, 98.75%), 6-month (1596/1641, 97.25%), and 12-month (725/797, 90.9%) follow-up visits. Preliminary analyses show that facilities scaling up APS identify approximately 12-18 new HIV-positive males for every 100 men contacted and tested. We are currently completing the remaining follow-up interviews and incorporating an HIV self-testing component into the study in response to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Conclusions

The results will help bridge the gap between clinical research findings and real-world practice and provide guidance regarding optimal strategies for APS integration into routine HIV service delivery.

International Registered Report Identifier (IRRID)

DERR1-10.2196/27262

**This abstract is posted with permission under the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License**

✪ National implementation of HPV vaccination programs in low-resource countries: Lessons, challenges, and future prospects

Authors:

Vivien D. Tsu, D. Scott LaMontagne, Phionah Atuhebwe, Paul N. Bloem, Cathy Ndiaye

University of Washington affiliated authors are displayed in bold.

✪ Open Access

Published: March 2021

Read the full text open access in the journal Preventive Medicine

Abstract:

More than 90% of cervical cancer deaths occur in low- and middle-income countries (LMICs), which have limited capacity to mount the comprehensive national screening and precancer treatment programs that could prevent most of these deaths. The development of vaccines against the human papillomavirus (HPV) has dramatically altered the landscape of cervical cancer prevention. As of mid-2020, 56 LMICs (41% of all LMICs) have initiated national HPV vaccination programs. This paper reviews the experience of LMICs that have introduced HPV vaccine into their national programs, key lessons learned, HPV vaccination sustainability and scale-up challenges, and future mitigation measures.

As international guidance evolved and countries accumulated experience, strategies for national introduction shifted with regard to target groups, delivery site and timing, preparation and planning, communications and social mobilization, and ultimately monitoring, supervision and evaluation. Despite the successes that LMICs have been able to achieve in reaching large proportions of eligible girls, there are still considerable challenges countries encounter in overcoming rumors, reaching out-of-school girls, completing the vaccine series, estimating target populations, monitoring program performance, and assuring vaccination sustainability. New opportunities, such as the entry of additional vaccine manufacturers and ongoing studies to evaluate one-dose delivery, could help overcome the outstanding barriers to higher coverage and financial sustainability. Effective use of the experience to date and advances on the horizon could enable all LMICs to move towards the coverage levels that are needed to achieve eventual elimination.

**This abstract is posted with permission under the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License**