Dataset Information

Did a quality improvement intervention improve quality of maternal health care? Implementation evaluation from a cluster-randomized controlled study.

ABSTRACT:

Objective

To test the success of a maternal healthcare quality improvement intervention in actually improving quality.

Design

Cluster-randomized controlled study with implementation evaluation; we randomized 12 primary care facilities to receive a quality improvement intervention, while 12 facilities served as controls.

Setting

Four districts in rural Tanzania.

Participants

Health facilities (24), providers (70 at baseline; 119 at endline) and patients (784 at baseline; 886 at endline).

Interventions

In-service training, mentorship and supportive supervision and infrastructure support.

Main outcome measures

We measured fidelity with indictors of quality and compared quality between intervention and control facilities using difference-in-differences analysis.

Results

Quality of care was low at baseline: the average provider knowledge test score was 46.1% (range: 0-75%) and only 47.9% of women were very satisfied with delivery care. The intervention was associated with an increase in newborn counseling (?: 0.74, 95% CI: 0.13, 1.35) but no evidence of change across 17 additional indicators of quality. On average, facilities reached 39% implementation. Comparing facilities with the highest implementation of the intervention to control facilities again showed improvement on only one of the 18 quality indicators.

Conclusions

A multi-faceted quality improvement intervention resulted in no meaningful improvement in quality. Evidence suggests this is due to both failure to sustain a high-level of implementation and failure in theory: quality improvement interventions targeted at the clinic-level in primary care clinics with weak starting quality, including poor infrastructure and low provider competence, may not be effective.

SUBMITTER: Larson E

PROVIDER: S-EPMC7172021 | biostudies-literature | 2020 Apr

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature

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Publications

Did a quality improvement intervention improve quality of maternal health care? Implementation evaluation from a cluster-randomized controlled study.

Larson Elysia E Mbaruku Godfrey M GM Cohen Jessica J Kruk Margaret E ME

International journal for quality in health care : journal of the International Society for Quality in Health Care 20200401 1

<h4>Objective</h4>To test the success of a maternal healthcare quality improvement intervention in actually improving quality.<h4>Design</h4>Cluster-randomized controlled study with implementation evaluation; we randomized 12 primary care facilities to receive a quality improvement intervention, while 12 facilities served as controls.<h4>Setting</h4>Four districts in rural Tanzania.<h4>Participants</h4>Health facilities (24), providers (70 at baseline; 119 at endline) and patients (784 at baseli ...[more]

PMID: 31829427

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Project description:ObjectivesTo study the implementation of a cluster randomised controlled effectiveness-implementation hybrid trial testing the effectiveness of a medication review at hospital discharge combined with a communication stimulus between hospital physicians (HPs) and general practitioners (GPs) on rehospitalisation of multimorbid older patients.DesignExtension of Grant's mixed method process evaluation framework to trials with multilevel clustering.SettingGeneral internal medicine wards in Swiss hospitals.ParticipantsConvenience samples of 15 chief physicians (of 21 hospitals participating in the effectiveness trial), 60 (74) senior HPs, 65 (164) junior HPs and 187 (411) GPs.Implementation strategyTwo-hour teaching sessions for senior HPs on a patient-centred, checklist-guided discharge routine.Process evaluation componentsData collection on recruitment, delivery and response from chief physicians (semistructured interviews), senior HPs, junior HPs, GPs (surveys) and patients (via HPs). Quantitative data were summarised using descriptive statistics, and interviews analysed using thematic analysis.Outcome measuresIntervention dose (quantitative), implementation fidelity (qualitative), feasibility and acceptability, facilitators and barriers, implementation support strategies.ResultsRecruitment of hospitals was laborious but successful, with 21 hospitals recruited. Minimal workload and a perceived benefit for the clinic were crucial factors for participation. Intervention dose was high (95% of checklist activities carried out), but intervention fidelity was limited (discharge letters) or unknown (medication review). Recruitment and retention of patients was challenging, partly due to patient characteristics (old, frail) and the COVID-19 pandemic: Only 612 of the anticipated 2100 patients were recruited, and 31% were lost to follow-up within the first month after discharge. The intervention was deemed feasible and helpful by HPs, and the relevance of the topic appreciated by both HPs and GPs.ConclusionsThe results from this evaluation will support interpretation of the findings of the effectiveness study and may inform researchers and policy makers who aim at improving hospital discharge.Trial registration numberISRCTN18427377.

Project description:BackgroundCommunity health workers (CHWs) play key roles in delivering health programmes in many countries worldwide. CHW programmes can improve coverage of maternal and child health services for the most disadvantaged and remote communities, leading to substantial benefits for mothers and children. However, there is limited evidence of effective mentoring and supervision approaches for CHWs.MethodsThis is a cluster randomised controlled trial to investigate the effectiveness of a continuous quality improvement (CQI) intervention amongst CHWs providing home-based education and support to pregnant women and mothers. Thirty CHW supervisors were randomly allocated to intervention (n = 15) and control (n = 15) arms. Four CHWs were randomly selected from those routinely supported by each supervisor (n = 60 per arm). In the intervention arm, these four CHWs and their supervisor formed a quality improvement team. Intervention CHWs received a 2-week training in WHO Community Case Management followed by CQI mentoring for 12 months (preceded by 3 months lead-in to establish QI processes). Baseline and follow-up surveys were conducted with mothers of infants <12 months old living in households served by participating CHWs.ResultsInterviews were conducted with 736 and 606 mothers at baseline and follow-up respectively; socio-demographic characteristics were similar in both study arms and at each time point. At follow-up, compared to mothers served by control CHWs, mothers served by intervention CHWs were more likely to have received a CHW visit during pregnancy (75.7 vs 29.0%, p < 0.0001) and the postnatal period (72.6 vs 30.3%, p < 0.0001). Intervention mothers had higher maternal and child health knowledge scores (49 vs 43%, p = 0.02) and reported higher exclusive breastfeeding rates to 6 weeks (76.7 vs 65.1%, p = 0.02). HIV-positive mothers served by intervention CHWs were more likely to have disclosed their HIV status to the CHW (78.7 vs 50.0%, p = 0.007). Uptake of facility-based interventions were not significantly different.ConclusionsImproved training and CQI-based mentoring of CHWs can improve quantity and quality of CHW-mother interactions at household level, leading to improvements in mothers' knowledge and infant feeding practices.Trial registrationClinicalTrials.Gov NCT01774136.

Project description:BackgroundPeople with type 1 diabetes and raised glucose levels are at greater risk of retinopathy, nephropathy, neuropathy, cardiovascular disease, sexual health problems and foot disease. The UK National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) recommends continuous subcutaneous 'insulin pump' therapy for people with type 1 diabetes whose HbA1c is above 69 mmol/mol. Insulin pump use can improve quality of life, cut cardiovascular risk and increase treatment satisfaction. About 90,000 people in England and Wales meet NICE criteria for insulin pumps but do not use one. Insulin pump use also varies markedly by deprivation, ethnicity, sex and location. Increasing insulin pump use is a key improvement priority. Audit and feedback is a common but variably effective intervention. Limited capabilities of healthcare providers to mount effective responses to feedback from national audits, such as the National Diabetes Audit (NDA), undermines efforts to improve care. We have co-developed a theoretically and empirically informed quality improvement collaborative (QIC) to strengthen local responses to feedback with patients and carers, national audits and healthcare providers. We will evaluate whether the QIC improves the uptake of insulin pumps following NDA feedback.MethodsWe will undertake an efficient cluster randomised trial using routine data. The QIC will be delivered alongside the NDA to specialist diabetes teams in England and Wales. Our primary outcome will be the proportion of people with type 1 diabetes and an HbA1c above 69 mmol/mol who start and continue insulin pump use during the 18-month intervention period. Secondary outcomes will assess change in glucose control and duration of pump use. Subgroup analyses will explore impacts upon inequalities by ethnicity, sex, age and deprivation. A theory-informed process evaluation will explore diabetes specialist teams' engagement, implementation, fidelity and tailoring through observations, interviews, surveys and documentary analysis. An economic evaluation will micro-cost the QIC, estimate cost-effectiveness of NDA feedback with QIC and estimate the budget impact of NHS-wide QIC roll out.DiscussionOur study responds to a need for more head-to-head trials of different ways of reinforcing feedback delivery. Our findings will have implications for other large-scale audit and feedback programmes.Trial registrationISRCTN82176651 Registered 18 October 2022.

Project description:BACKGROUND:Quality Improvement (QI) initiatives in primary care are effective at improving uptake of evidence based guidelines, but are difficult to implement and sustain. In Australia meso-level health organisations such as Primary health care Organisations (PHCO) offer new opportunities to implement area-wide QI programs. This study sought to identify enablers and barriers to implementation of an existing Australian QI program and to identify strategic directions that PHCOs can use in the ongoing development of QI in this environment. METHODS:Semi-structured telephone interviews were conducted with 15 purposively selected program staff and participants from the Australian Primary Care Collaborative (APCC) QI program. Interviewees included seven people involved in design, administration and implementation of the APCC program and eight primary care providers (seven General Practitioners (GPs) and one practice nurse) who had participated in the program from 2004 to 2014. Interviewees were asked to describe their experience of the program and reflect on what enabled or impeded its implementation. Interviews were recorded, transcribed and iteratively analysed, with early analysis informing subsequent interviews. Identified themes and their implications were reviewed by a GP expert reference group. RESULTS:Implementation enablers and barriers were grouped into five thematic areas: (1) leadership, particularly the identification and utilisation of change champions; (2) organisational culture that supports quality improvement; (3) funding incentives that support a culture of quality and innovation; (4) access to and use of accurate data; and 5) design and utilisation of clinical systems that enable and support these issues. In all of these areas, the active involvement of an overarching external support organisation was considered a key ingredient to successful implementation. CONCLUSION:There are substantial opportunities for PHCOs to play a pivotal role in QI implementation in Australia and internationally. In developing QI programs and policies, such organisations ought to invest their efforts in: (1) identifying and mentoring local leaders; (2) fostering QI culture via development of local peer networks; (3) developing and advocating for alternative funding models to support and incentivise these activities; (4) investing in data and audit tool infrastructure; and (5) facilitation of systems implementation within primary care practices.

Project description:BACKGROUND:Despite policies and guidelines recommending integration of health services in South Africa, provision of maternal and child health services remains fragmented. This study evaluated a rapid, scaleable, quality improvement (QI) intervention to improve integration of maternal and child health and HIV services at a primary health level, in KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa. METHODS:A three-month intervention comprised of six QI mentoring visits, learning sessions with clinic staff to share learnings, and a self-administered checklist aimed to assist health workers monitor and implement an integrated package of health services for mothers and children. The study evaluated 27 clinics in four sub-districts using a stepped-wedge design. Each sub-district received the intervention sequentially in a randomly selected order. Five waves of data collection were conducted in all participating clinics between December 2016-February 2017. A multi-level, mixed effects logistic regression was used to account for random cluster fixed time and group effects using Stata V13.1. RESULTS:Improvements in some growth monitoring indicators were achieved in intervention clinics compared to control clinics, including measuring the length of the baby (77% vs 63%; p =?0.001) and health workers asking mothers about the child's feeding (74% vs 67%; p =?0.003), but the proportion of mothers who received feeding advice remained unchanged (38% vs 35%; p =?0.48). Significantly more mothers in the intervention group were asked about their baby's health (44% vs 36%; p =?0.001), and completeness of record keeping improved (40% vs 26%; I?=?<?0.0001). Discussions with the mother about some maternal health services improved: significantly more mothers in the intervention group were asked about HIV (26.5% vs 19.5%; p =?0.009) and family planning (33.5% vs 19.5%; p <? 0.001), but this did not result in additional services being provided to mothers at the clinic visit. CONCLUSION:This robust evaluation shows significant improvements in coverage of some services, but the QI intervention was unable to achieve the substantial changes required to provide a comprehensive package of services to all mothers and children. We suggest the QI process be adapted to complex under-resourced health systems, building on the strengths of this approach, to provide workable health systems strengthening solutions for scalable implementation. TRIAL REGISTRATION:ClinicalTrials.gov NCT04278612. Date of Registration: February 19, 2020. Retrospectively registered.

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Dataset Information

Did a quality improvement intervention improve quality of maternal health care? Implementation evaluation from a cluster-randomized controlled study.

Objective

Design

Setting

Participants

Interventions

Main outcome measures

Results

Conclusions

Publications

Did a quality improvement intervention improve quality of maternal health care? Implementation evaluation from a cluster-randomized controlled study.

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