Oral Presentation ESA-SRB-ANZOS 2025 in conjunction with ENSA

Key partner perspectives on adapting a healthy lifestyle program for children and young people in Boorloo/Perth, Western Australia (128034)

Stephen Paull 1 2 3 , Stephanie Smith 1 2 3 , Joanna C Moullin 4 , Nick Sevdalis 5 , Robyn Mildon 6 , Yvonne C Anderson 1 2 3
  1. Child and Adolescent Community Health, Child and Adolescent Health Service, Perth, WA, Australia
  2. Curtin Medical School, Faculty of Health Sciences, Curtin University, Bentley, WA, Australia
  3. The Kids Research Institute Australia, Nedlands, WA, Australia
  4. Curtin School of Population Health, Faculty of Health Sciences, Curtin University, Bentley, WA, Australia
  5. Centre for Behavioural and Implementation Science Interventions, National University of Singapore, Singapore
  6. Centre for Evidence and Implementation, Melbourne, Victoria, Australia

Accessible, family-based, and multi-disciplinary lifestyle and behavioural interventions are urgently needed to address the increase in childhood obesity;1,2 however, adopting and adapting such evidence-based programs is challenging and rarely implemented successfully.3

After extensive consultation with key healthcare partners and community groups, an equitable healthy lifestyle program from Aotearoa/New Zealand is being scaled out to pilot in East Boorloo/Perth.4,5 The program targets groups disproportionately affected and includes home-based weight-related health assessments, and 6 months of weekly community-based group education sessions.5

The aim of this qualitative study was to determine the barriers and enablers for successful program implementation in Perth, and the outcome measures that would demonstrate program success, based on the perspectives of health organisation leaders, interested healthcare professionals, referrers, and community support personnel.

A workshop with 22 key partners was conducted in March 2024, and an open-ended survey with 26 additional participants was conducted from September-October 2024. Workshop audio was transcribed verbatim and data were analysed using Framework Analysis6 incorporating the Consolidated Framework for Implementation Research (CFIR).7,8

Identified enablers of implementation included 1) Program design, 2) Leadership support, 3) Experienced implementation team, and 4) Urgent need for such a program. Identified barriers for implementation included 1) Constrained resources, 2) Compatibility with current health system structure, 3) Program suitability for different population groups, and 4) Engaging priority cohorts. The broader CFIR constructs will also be presented.

Identified outcome measures included participant (recruitment/retention, primary and secondary outcomes, experience, health knowledge), service (equity, health service capability, and others), and implementation outcomes (acceptability, sustainability, service integration and others).9

The identified perceived determinants have guided program development, and the agreed outcome measures have informed data collection and program evaluation. Engagement with key partners prior to adapting evidence-based innovations is vital to ensure place-based considerations are accounted for and implementation success is optimised.

  1. Skinner AC, Staiano AE, Armstrong SC, et al. Appraisal of Clinical Care Practices for Child Obesity Treatment. Part I: Interventions. Pediatrics (Evanston). 2023;151(2):1. doi:10.1542/peds.2022-060642
  2. World Health Organization. Report of the commission on ending childhood obesity. World Health Organization; 2016. https://www.who.int/publications/i/item/9789241510066
  3. Bauer MS, Kirchner J. Implementation science: What is it and why should I care? Psychiatry Res. 2020;283:112376. doi:10.1016/j.psychres.2019.04.025
  4. Anderson YC, Wynter LE, Grant CC, et al. A Novel Home‐Based Intervention for Child and Adolescent Obesity: The Results of the Whānau Pakari Randomized Controlled Trial. Obesity. 2017;25(11):1965-1973. doi:10.1002/oby.21967
  5. Anderson YC, Wynter LE, Moller KR, et al. The effect of a multi-disciplinary obesity intervention compared to usual practice in those ready to make lifestyle changes: design and rationale of Whanau Pakari. BMC Obesity. 2015;2(1):41. doi:10.1186/s40608-015-0068-y
  6. Ritchie J, Spencer L. Qualitative data analysis for applied policy research. In: Bryman A, Burgess RG, eds. Analyzing qualitative data. Routledge; 2002:173-194:chap 9. doi:10.4324/9780203413081-14
  7. Damschroder LJ, Reardon CM, Widerquist MAO, Lowery J. The updated Consolidated Framework for Implementation Research based on user feedback. Implementation science. 2022;17(1):1-75. doi:10.1186/s13012-022-01245-0
  8. Smith J, Braithwaite J, O’Brien TA, et al. Re-Imagining the Data Collection and Analysis Research Process by Proposing a Rapid Qualitative Data Collection and Analytic Roadmap Applied to the Dynamic Context of Precision Medicine. International journal of qualitative methods. 2022;21doi:10.1177/16094069221103097
  9. Proctor E, Silmere H, Raghavan R, et al. Outcomes for Implementation Research: Conceptual Distinctions, Measurement Challenges, and Research Agenda. Administration and policy in mental health and mental health services research. 2011;38(2):65-76. doi:10.1007/s10488-010-0319-7