Facilitators and barriers of routine psychosocial distress assessment within a stepped and collaborative care model in a Swiss hospital setting

PLoS One. 2023 Jun 30;18(6):e0285395. doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0285395. eCollection 2023.

Abstract

Background: Stepped and Collaborative Care Models (SCCMs) have shown potential for improving mental health care. Most SCCMs have been used in primary care settings. At the core of such models are initial psychosocial distress assessments commonly in form of patient screening. We aimed to assess the feasibility of such assessments in a general hospital setting in Switzerland.

Methods: We conducted and analyzed eighteen semi-structured interviews with nurses and physicians involved in a recent introduction of a SCCM model in a hospital setting, as part of the SomPsyNet project in Basel-Stadt. Following an implementation research approach, we used the Tailored Implementation for Chronic Diseases (TICD) framework for analysis. The TICD distinguishes seven domains: guideline factors, individual healthcare professional factors, patient factors, professional interactions, incentives and resources, capacity for organizational change, and social, political, and legal factors. Domains were split into themes and subthemes, which were used for line-by-line coding.

Results: Nurses and physicians reported factors belonging to all seven TICD domains. An appropriate integration of the psychosocial distress assessment into preexisting hospital processes and information technology systems was the most important facilitator. Subjectivity of the assessment, lack of awareness about the assessment, and time constraints, particularly among physicians, were factors undermining and limiting the implementation of the psychosocial distress assessment.

Conclusions: Awareness raising through regular training of new employees, feedback on performance and patient benefits, and working with champions and opinion leaders can likely support a successful implementation of routine psychosocial distress assessments. Additionally, aligning psychosocial distress assessments with workflows is essential to assure the sustainability of the procedure in a working context with commonly limited time.

Publication types

  • Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

MeSH terms

  • Blood Coagulation Tests
  • Ethnicity*
  • Health Personnel
  • Hospitals, General*
  • Humans
  • Switzerland

Grants and funding

This study was part of an external evaluation of the SomPsyNet project, sponsored by Health Promotion Switzerland (https://gesundheitsfoerderung.ch/), within the project for prevention in health care (contract number 19.041). Additional funds based on a performance agreement were provided by Swiss Learning Health System (SLHS; https://www.slhs.ch/). The sponsors had no role in study design, data collection and analysis, decision to publish or preparation of the manuscript.