From intention to action: A systematic literature review of provider behaviour change‐focused interventions in physical health and behavioural health settings

It is clear there are significant delays in the uptake of best practices as part of routine care in the healthcare system, yet there is conflicting evidence on how to specifically align provider behaviour with best practices.

Method

We conducted a review of interventions utilized to change any aspect of provider behaviour. To extend prior research, studies were included in the present review if they had an active intervention targeting behaviour change of providers in health or behavioural‐health settings and were published between 2001 and 2020.

Results

Of 1547 studies, 44 met inclusion criteria. Of 44 studies identified, 28 studies utilized contextually relevant interventions (eg, tailored to a specific provider population). Twenty-six interventions with a contextually relevant approach resulted in provider behaviour change.

Conclusions

Findings are promising for encouraging provider behaviour change when interventions are tailored to be contextually relevant, as both single‐component and multifaceted interventions were successful when they were contextually relevant. It is critical to conduct additional research to ensure that providers sustain behaviour changes over a long‐term beyond an intervention’s implementation and evaluation period.