Experiences of practice facilitators working on the Improved Delivery of Cardiovascular Care project: Retrospective case study.

OBJECTIVE

To examine the barriers to and facilitators of practice facilitation experienced by participants in the Improving Delivery of Cardiovascular Care (IDOCC) project.

DESIGN

Case studies of practice facilitators' narrative reports.

SETTING

Eastern Ontario.

PARTICIPANTS

Primary care practices that participated in the IDOCC project.

MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES

Cases were identified by calculating sum scores in order to determine practices' performance relative to their peers. Two case exemplars were selected that scored within ± 1 SD of the total mean score, and a qualitative analysis of practice facilitators' narrative reports was conducted using a 5-factor implementation framework to identify barriers and facilitators. Narratives were divided into 3 phases: planning, implementation, and sustainability.

RESULTS

Barriers and facilitators fluctuated over the intervention's 3 phases. Site A reported more barriers (n = 47) than facilitators (n = 38), while site B reported a roughly equal number of barriers (n = 144) and facilitators (n = 136). In both sites, the most common barriers involved organizational and provider factors and the most common facilitators were associated with innovation and structural factors.

CONCLUSION

Both practices encountered various barriers and facilitators throughout the IDOCC's 3 phases. The case studies reveal the complex interactions of these factors over time, and provide insight into the implementation of practice facilitation programs.