Team functioning and implementation of innovations in healthcare and human service settings: a systematic review protocol

BACKGROUND: Healthcare and human services increasingly rely on teams of individuals to deliver services. Implementation of evidence-based practices and other innovations in these settings requires teams to work together to change processes and behaviors. Accordingly, team functioning may be a key determinant of implementation outcomes. This systematic review will identify and summarize empirical research examining associations between team functioning and implementation outcomes in healthcare and human service settings. METHODS: We will conduct a comprehensive search of bibliographic databases (e.g., MEDLINE, PsycINFO, CINAHL, ERIC) for articles published from January 2000 or later. We will include peer-reviewed empirical articles and conference abstracts using quantitative, qualitative, or mixed methods. We will include experimental or observational studies that report on the implementation of an innovation in a healthcare or human service setting and examine associations between team functioning and implementation outcomes. Implementation outcomes of interest are acceptability, adoption, appropriateness, cost, feasibility, fidelity, penetration, and sustainability. Two reviewers will independently screen all titles/abstracts, review full-text articles, and extract data from included articles. We will use the Mixed Methods Appraisal Tool to assess methodological quality/bias and conduct a narrative synthesis without meta-analysis. DISCUSSION: Understanding how team functioning influences implementation outcomes will contribute to our understanding of team-level barriers and facilitators of change. The results of this systematic review will inform efforts to implement evidence-based practices in team-based service settings. SYSTEMATIC REVIEW REGISTRATION: PROSPERO CRD42020220168 SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1186/s13643-021-01747-w.