Dr Alix Hall has recently published a systematic review that looks at the quality, and use, of measures of sustainability (i.e. ongoing delivery of evidence based interventions) and sustainability determinants (i.e. factors that impact on sustainability) in clinical, public health, and community settings.
The review includes 223 studies representing 28 different measures. Of these 28 measures two assessed sustainability as an outcome, 25 assessed sustainability determinants, and one assessed both.
The quality of each measure was assessed using the Psychometric and Pragmatic Evidence Rating Scale (PAPERS).The review found that the quality of the measures was variable. Scores on the PAPERS rating scale ranged from 14 to 35 out of a possible 56 points across the 28 measures. The ‘Provider Report of Sustainment Scale’ had the highest PAPERS score, which was a measure of sustainability as an outcome. The ‘School-wide Universal Behaviour Sustainability Index-School Teams’ had the highest score of the measures of sustainability determinants. All measures were available in English, while only five measures were also available in another language.
Overall, the review found that current measures of sustainability and sustainability determinants are of variable quality and have not been widely used in research. Further studies are needed to improve the quality of these measures. Translation of existing measures to languages other than English should also be considered to ensure greater access to such resources.
For more information, see the full text article and the plain language summary, ‘Measuring sustainability in Public Health, Clinical, and Community settings: A systematic review of available measures’
Reference:
Evaluation of measures of sustainability and sustainability determinants for use in community, public health, and clinical settings: a systematic review.
Authors: Hall A, Shoesmith A, Doherty E, McEvoy B, Mettert K, Lewis C, Wolfenden L, Yoong S, Kingsland M, Shelton R, Wiltsey-Stirman S, Imad N, Sutherland S, Nathan N. 2022. Implementation Science. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1186/s13012-022-01252-1.