Adapt to evaluate: Lessons from a multi-site trial of a digitally enabled care transition intervention.

Abstract

Digital health interventions are complex, involving the interactions of organizations, people, workflows, and technology. Adaptability is needed in both implementation and evaluation strategies to meet the needs of organizations, clinicians, patients, and researchers. The Digital Bridge project aims to co-design, implement, and evaluate a digitally enabled care transition intervention for older adults with complex needs. We encountered varying ability of partners to engage at different times, alongside changes in technology infrastructure, vendor, and healthcare services offered including unanticipated emergence of other care transition interventions. Through collaboration with health system partners, implementation and evaluation strategies were adapted. In evaluating digital health interventions, adaptability and flexibility in implementation strategies and evaluation methods are needed to meet the real-world need of delivering digital health interventions at scale. The Learning Health System Action Framework may offer insights as to how to address these tensions.