Integrating Evidence-Based Early Relational Health Programs Into Pediatric Primary Care: A Mixed Methods Study

Pediatric primary care (PPC) offers an ideal platform for integrating evidence-based programs (EBPs) to enhance early relational health (ERH). However, implementing such integration faces several challenges. This study uses quantitative and qualitative data to identify the barriers, facilitators, and strategies for implementing ERH-focused EBPs in PPC.

Using the Consolidated Framework for Implementation Research framework, we conducted a survey and focus groups with PPC personnel recruited through nationwide networks. The survey measured clinic readiness (ie, challenges, resources, and needs) for integration and examined its associations with personnel roles and clinic characteristics using nested ANOVAs and multilevel regressions. Focus groups further probed potential strategies and were coded using thematic analysis.

One hundred and twenty-six PPC personnel from 44 clinics completed the survey, and 18 participated in 5 focus groups. Clinics had strong leadership support for integrated services and high utilization of program resources and implementation practices, yet notable challenges in structural and human resources existed. Clinic staff perceived higher readiness for integration than other personnel roles. Lower-percent Medicaid-eligible patients and urbanicity were associated with higher readiness, while academic affiliation showed both positive and negative associations. Promoting culturally responsive care, fostering team cohesion, utilizing standardized implementation processes, adopting flexible delivery and collaborative models, and partnering with local communities were key strategies for integrating EBPs.

The findings can help PPC clinics more effectively integrate 1 or multiple EBPs into routine care and can inform ways to sustain such integrated services to optimize population-level reach and positive impacts on child and family well-being.