Community-based implementation strategy use and satisfaction: A mixed-methods approach to using the ERIC compilation for organizations serving children on the autism spectrum.

Examining community providers' preferences and experiences with implementation strategies used to facilitate evidence-based practice uptake can broaden our understanding of what, how, and why implementation strategies work in community-based settings ( Chaudoir et al., 2013; Leeman et al., 2017; Proctor et al., 2013). Such efforts have great potential to tailor implementation strategies to address barriers/facilitators typically found in community-based settings.This case study demonstrates a practical approach using mixed methodology to: (a) gather self-reported use of and satisfaction with implementation strategies to understand community providers' perspectives of implementation strategy success. Using a new survey, the Implementation Strategies and Satisfaction Survey (ISSS) conjoined with interviews, the study demonstrated a practical approach using standardized language to report strategies used in one university-based site and two community-based replication sites that deliver an early intensive behavioral intervention (EIBI) for children on the autism spectrum. This paper contributes to one of the five priorities to enhance public health impact-improve tracking and reporting of implementation strategies utilized when translating research into practice ( Dingfelder & Mandell, 2011; Powell et al., 2019; Stahmer et al., 2019). This approach emphasizes the importance of understanding context (e.g., community organizations providing services to children on the autism spectrum) to develop strategies that work better for EIBI implementation and scale-up. Understanding community provider's preferences and experiences with implementation strategies can support use of implementation strategies that better fit usual care contexts, with the ultimate goal of improving implementation practice in community-based settings.