Early intervention in chronic disease--four years on: barriers to implementing self-management strategies

Previous evaluation of staff training in self-management of chronic disease reports poor implementation in primary health care settings. It was hypothesized that after 4 years of funding for staff training, implementation rates would have improved.

Fifty-six primary health care staff who had recently undertaken training in self-management in chronic disease were asked to complete a survey regarding the implementation of the training in their workplace.

There was a 43% response rate across 12 organizations. Of the respondents, 87.5% reported implementing the training into practice.

Confidence of staff in implementing training remains problematic. Staff who identify as having low-level confidence may benefit from peer mentoring in the workplace.