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. 2025 Jun 3;17(2):e1-e7.
doi: 10.4102/phcfm.v17i2.4934.

Understanding implementation research

Robert Mash  1 , Juliet Nyasulu, Zelra Malan, Lisa Hirschhorn
Affiliations

Understanding implementation research

Robert Mash et al. Afr J Prim Health Care Fam Med. .

Abstract

Implementation research (IR) focuses on understanding and closing the gap between evidence-based interventions and practice. Key elements to evaluate include the design of the intervention itself, contextual barriers and enablers to implementation, the use of implementation strategies as well as the achievement of implementation outcomes. This article gives an overview of IR for doctoral-level researchers in the fields of family medicine and primary care. The consolidated framework for IR and socioecological model are considered for making sense of the contextual factors. A typology of implementation strategies is also described to make conceptualisation, reporting and sharing of findings easier. Standard implementation outcomes are described, such as coverage or reach, acceptability, adoption, appropriateness, feasibility, fidelity, costs and sustainability. The RE-AIM framework for implementation outcomes is described. Finally, different study designs are discussed, including hybrid effectiveness-implementation designs and approaches to reporting using the IR logic model.

Keywords: implementation; implementation outcomes; implementation research; implementation strategies; methodology; methods; primary care.

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Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare that they have no financial or personal relationships that may have inappropriately influenced them in writing this article. R.M. declares that he is the Editor-in-Chief and Z.M. is a section editor of the African Journal of Primary Health Care & Family Medicine. The peer review process for this submission was handled independently, and the authors had no involvement in the editorial decision-making process for this article. The authors has no other competing interests to declare.

Figures

FIGURE 1
FIGURE 1
The socioecological model.
FIGURE 2
FIGURE 2
Typology of implementation strategies.
FIGURE 3
FIGURE 3
RE-AIM framework for evaluating implementation outcomes.
FIGURE 4
FIGURE 4
Template for the implementation research logic model.
FIGURE 5
FIGURE 5
Example of an implementation research logic model.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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