Finding Opportunities to Enhance Evidence-Based Treatment Through Provider Feedback: A Qualitative Study

Abstract

The Child System and Treatment Enhancement Projects (Child STEPs) clinical trials have endeavored to help bridge the gap between science and practice in children’s mental health services. The current study used an inductive coding approach to analyze feedback from 2 qualitative focus groups comprising 15 community mental health providers in the Los Angeles area. It explored the factors influencing provider implementation experiences with an innovative modular treatment design during the Child STEPs in California randomized effectiveness trial. Themes from the focus group discussions—including consultation, flexibility, treatment fit, study influences, and context—are presented and their implications explored. Two potential avenues for addressing provider concerns were considered: design strategies and supportive strategies. Primarily in the service context of Los Angeles, provider feedback suggested that the treatment’s fit to diverse client populations was a central concern and that the ongoing consultation process meaningfully influenced provider perceptions of treatment flexibility in meeting client needs.