Challenges in Implementing Evidence-Based Practices and Programs in Nonprofit Human Service Organizations

Despard, Mathieu R.

doi:10.1080/23761407.2015.1086719

Cited by 25 publications

(20 citation statements)

References 98 publications

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“…External barriers noted include the lack of knowledge-sharing networks and non-existent or tenuous relationships with researchers or academic institutions. 16…”

Section: Knowledge Mobilizationmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Internally, challenges include resource limits in terms of staff, time and financial constraints, as well as a lack of (or perception of lack of) capacity among staff to access and use evidence and evaluation information. External barriers noted include the lack of knowledge‐sharing networks and non‐existent or tenuous relationships with researchers or academic institutions …”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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What makes for effective, sustainable youth engagement in knowledge mobilization? A perspective for health services

Canas

Lachance

Phipps

et al. 2019

Health Expectations

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BackgroundYoung people who seek mental health treatment often also seek the services of non‐profit organizations to support their well‐being. Wisdom2Action (W2A) is a Canadian knowledge mobilization network that focuses on improving the mental health and well‐being of children and youth in challenging contexts by increasing the use of evaluation, evidence and engagement in the youth‐serving sector. Since 2013, W2A has engaged youth advisors (YAs) to provide input to W2A's Board, lead their own projects and co‐design W2A activities.ObjectiveIn fall 2017, the YAs, as well as adult Board members and W2A staff, collaborated in a participatory evaluation to better understand the experiences and impacts of youth engagement. This article describes insights derived through this process.Design and participantsBoard, YAs and staff members participated in a reflective approach to informing, analysing and sharing the findings from this process. Individual interviews and review of documents, as well as iterative cycles of group analysis and synthesis, were conducted.ResultsBoth YAC members and W2A benefit from YAs’ leadership and engagement. The YAs position themselves as members of the youth‐serving sector, not merely recipients of its services; as such, their professional development aligns with the mandates of W2A and merits further investment, despite challenges in impact measurement.ConclusionThis article identifies challenges and facilitators of implementing an effective and sustainable youth advisory council model of engagement in the context of a pan‐Canadian network. The mutual gains and areas of growth for youth, adults and the organization described can inform health services, as well as funders and advocates for youth well‐being.

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“…External barriers noted include the lack of knowledge-sharing networks and non-existent or tenuous relationships with researchers or academic institutions. 16…”

Section: Knowledge Mobilizationmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

What makes for effective, sustainable youth engagement in knowledge mobilization? A perspective for health services

Canas

Lachance

Phipps

et al. 2019

Health Expectations

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

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“…Also, one might argue that the focus on factors operating as barriers and facilitators is restrictive, and future research might benefit from taking a broader approach by focusing on the overall experiences of TSOs to undertake evaluation. Last, this review did not investigate factors affecting the capacity for TSOs to implement evidence-based programmes and interventions, which is often acknowledged to be a central limitation in the third sector delivery of social and clinical work [ 13 , 89 ]. Building on this review, future efforts should be made to investigate the barriers and facilitators related to the implementation of evidence-based interventions and programmes by TSOs.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…However, despite the increasing emphasis on impact and performance evaluation by government and commissioners, many third sector organisations (TSOs) fail to evaluate their activities following the principles of evidence-based practice (EBP), which promote rigorous, reproducible and systematic methods [ 9 ]. While it is generally acknowledged that monitoring and evaluation according to best practice is important in the delivery of services, there has been little systematic effort to investigate why the third sector is struggling to evidence its impact, despite becoming a growing provider of social and health services [ 10 – 13 ].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…More recently, another report which surveyed 1000 TSOs found that 25% did not evaluate their work at all [ 27 ]. While these studies cannot be assumed to be representative of the full population of TSOs, they seem to mirror a growing body of evidence indicating that the sector struggles to adhere meaningfully to the increasing demand for the evaluation of their services [ 2 , 13 , 30 , 31 ].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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What are the barriers and facilitators for third sector organisations (non-profits) to evaluate their services? A systematic review

Bach-Mortensen

Montgomery

2018

Syst Rev

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BackgroundThe third sector is becoming a more common provider of social and health services, but little is known about how third sector organisations (TSOs) evaluate their activities. Past research has reported that the third sector is under increasing pressure to evaluate its impact and performance by government and other commissioning bodies. However, in responding to this increased pressure to undertake evaluation, research suggests that many TSOs struggle to evaluate their activities following the principles of evidence-based practice (EBP). Yet, there has been no systematic effort to investigate why the third sector is struggling to provide good quality evidence of its effects.MethodsThis systematic review is reported following the PRISMA guidelines. Ten interdisciplinary databases were searched using a search string developed following best practice and in consultation with an information systems expert. Included studies were primary research of any research design investigating barriers to and facilitators of the evaluation process of TSOs as identified by practitioners. All studies were quality appraised, and the results were synthesised as a thematic summary.ResultsTwenty-four studies were included, which mainly investigated TSOs working within health and social services. The thematic summary identified the main barriers for TSOs to undertake evaluation to be related to the (1) lack of financial resources, (2) lack of technical capability and evaluation literacy and (3) challenges around identifying relevant evaluation systems and outcome indicators. Key facilitating factors involved (1) getting the appropriate support, (2) having an organisational culture that supports evaluation and (3) the motivation to be accountable to stakeholders. These findings were robust to study quality.ConclusionsThis review constitutes the first systematic effort to synthesise existing literature on factors supporting and preventing evaluation by TSOs. The prevalence of factors revolving around the lack of support, resources and clarity on appropriate outcome indicators suggests that many of the identified challenges may be met by applying evidence-based and stakeholder-inclusive strategies to develop shared evaluation requirements. Future efforts should address the application of EBP as part of the commissioning process of TSOs.Electronic supplementary materialThe online version of this article (10.1186/s13643-018-0681-1) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.

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Scoping review of practice‐focused resources to support the implementation of place‐based approaches

Klepac,

Branch,

McVey

et al. 2023

Health Prom J of Aust

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Issue AddressedThere is increasing interest across public health research, policy, and practice in place‐based approaches to improve health outcomes. Practice‐focused resources, such as grey literature, courses and websites, are utilised by practitioners to support the implementation of place‐based approaches.MethodsA detailed search of two search engines: Google and DuckDuckGo to identify free practice‐focused resources was conducted.ResultsForty‐one resources met inclusion criteria, including 26 publications, 13 web‐based resources and two courses. They were mainly focused on collaboration, developed by not‐for‐profit organisations, focused on a broad target audience, and supported people living with disadvantage. The publications we reviewed generally: clearly stated important information, such as the author of the publication; used their own evaluations, professional experience and other grey literature as supporting evidence; included specific, practical implementation strategies; and were easy to read.ConclusionsBased on findings, we recommend that: (1) the development of resources to support evidence‐informed practice and governance be prioritised; (2) resources clearly state their target audience and tailor communication to this audience; (3) resources draw on evidence from a range of sources; (4) resources continue to include practical implementation strategies supported by examples and (5) resource content be adaptable to different contexts (e.g., different settings and/or target populations).So What?This is the first review of practice‐focused resources to support the implementation of place‐based approaches and the findings can be used to reduce duplication of efforts and inform future research, policy, and practice, particularly the refinement of existing resources and the development of future resources.

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Challenges in Implementing Evidence-Based Practices and Programs in Nonprofit Human Service Organizations

Cited by 25 publications

References 98 publications

What makes for effective, sustainable youth engagement in knowledge mobilization? A perspective for health services

What makes for effective, sustainable youth engagement in knowledge mobilization? A perspective for health services

What are the barriers and facilitators for third sector organisations (non-profits) to evaluate their services? A systematic review

Scoping review of practice‐focused resources to support the implementation of place‐based approaches

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