Facilitators and hindrances of implementing colorectal cancer screening intervention among Vietnamese Americans

Background: Little is published about the factors that facilitate and hinder the intervention implementation process. Objective: The aim of this study was to examine factors that facilitated and hindered the implementation of a culturally appropriate colorectal cancer screening intervention targeting Vietnamese Americans in a Federally Qualified Health Center located in the Puget Sound area of Washington. Methods: Three focus group discussions (2 during the implementation phase and 1 during the maintenance phase) with the medical assistants (N = 13) who were the intervention implementation agents were conducted at the Federally Qualified Health Center. Three research team members independently analyzed the data using content analysis and then compared for agreement. We reread and recoded the transcripts until consensus was reached. The themes were clustered by similar codes and categorized into 4 groups, each including facilitators and hindrances of implementation: identification of implementation agents, implementation environment, intervention recipients, and the colorectal cancer screening intervention. Results: Facilitators included medical assistants' high motivation with a positive attitude toward the intervention, team approach, and simplicity of the intervention, whereas hindrances included lack of time, forgetfulness, staff turnover, and language barriers. Conclusion: The findings emphasized the importance of supporting implementation agents to ensure effective intervention program implementation. Implications for Practice: Oncology nurses need to particularly take into consideration the evidence-based findings when planning any intervention programs.