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Practical Implementation Science: Developing and Piloting the Quality Implementation Tool

  • Original Paper
  • Published:
American Journal of Community Psychology

Abstract

According to the Interactive Systems Framework for Dissemination and Implementation, implementation is a major mechanism and concern in bridging research and practice. The growing number of implementation frameworks need to be synthesized and translated so that the science and practice of quality implementation can be furthered. In this article, we: (1) use the synthesis of frameworks developed by Meyers et al. (Am J Commun Psychol, 2012) and translate the results into a practical implementation science tool to use for improving quality of implementation (i.e., the Quality Implementation Tool; QIT), and (2) present some of the benefits and limitations of the tool by describing how the QIT was implemented in two different pilot projects. We discuss how the QIT can be used to guide collaborative planning, monitoring, and evaluation of how an innovation is implemented.

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Notes

  1. We note that implementation could additionally be included in the ISF model within the bi-directional arrow between the Support System and the Synthesis and Translation System (e.g., collaboration between developers of innovations and members of the Support System to develop high quality training and/or mechanisms for TA). We recognize that there are factors beyond what we discuss in this article that affect implementation but for the purposes of this tool we focus on more proximal factors.

  2. Getting To Outcomes® and GTO® are registered by the University of South Carolina and RAND.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. University of South Carolina, Columbia, SC, USA

    Duncan C. Meyers, Jason Katz, Victoria Chien, Abraham Wandersman, Jonathan P. Scaccia & Annie Wright

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  1. Duncan C. Meyers
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  2. Jason Katz
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  3. Victoria Chien
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  4. Abraham Wandersman
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  5. Jonathan P. Scaccia
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  6. Annie Wright
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Correspondence to Duncan C. Meyers.

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Meyers, D.C., Katz, J., Chien, V. et al. Practical Implementation Science: Developing and Piloting the Quality Implementation Tool. Am J Community Psychol 50, 481–496 (2012). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10464-012-9521-y

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