Attachment B1_Interview Protocol for HRSA Project Officers

Attachment B1: Interview Protocols for MH Portfolio Project Officers OMB No. 0906-XXXX

Expires: XX/XX/20XX

Attachment B1. Maternal Health Portfolio Evaluation Interview Protocol for HRSA Project Officers

Public Burden Statement: This is a new Information Collection Request (ICR) requesting approval to collect data for a portfolio-wide evaluation of Maternal Health (MH) programs funded by the Health Resources and Services Administration. An agency may not conduct or sponsor, and a person is not required to respond to, a collection of information unless it displays a currently valid OMB control number. The OMB control number for this information collection is 0906-XXXX and it is valid until XX/XX/202X. This information collection is voluntary. Public reporting burden for this collection of information is estimated to average 1 hour per response, including the time for reviewing instructions, searching existing data sources, and completing and reviewing the collection of information. Send comments regarding this burden estimate or any other aspect of this collection of information, including suggestions for reducing this burden, to HRSA Reports Clearance Officer, 5600 Fishers Lane, Room 14N136B, Rockville, Maryland, 20857 or [email protected].

The Evaluator will tailor each protocol to the specific programs within each respondent’s purview prior to conducting the interview. Evaluators will determine, in collaboration with HRSA, which activities the awardee is implementing based on program documents. These activities will correspond with data collection elements of the seven MH Portfolio strategies from the evaluation design, including: 1) Establishing and Strengthening Partnerships and State Capacity; 2) Workforce Training and Expanding the Maternal Health Workforce; 3) Providing Technical Assistance; 4) Improving Access and Coordinating Care; 5) Implementing Quality Improvement Initiatives, including Maternal Safety Bundles; 6) Implementing Telehealth; and 7) Creating and Disseminating Products.

Because there is such a wide range of activities being implemented across the MH Portfolio, HRSA has decided to limit evaluation at the activity-level to seven specific activities:

[Strategy: Implementing Clinical Quality Improvement Initiatives]

1. Implementing AIM bundles

[Strategy: Improving Access and Coordination of Care]

2. Interventions to educate patients and providers about post-partum warning signs

3. Interventions to address substance use and mental health

4. Interventions to improve or redesign post-partum visits

[Strategy: Workforce Training and Expanding the Maternal Health Workforce]

5. Implicit bias training

6. Implementing provider trainings

[Strategy: Implementing Telehealth]

7. Interventions that utilize telehealth

If the specific programs within each respondent’s purview are implementing any of these activities, they will be asked additional follow-up questions about these activities at various points throughout the interview.

Introductory Script and Informed Consent (Verbal)

Good morning/afternoon. My name is [NAME] and I am a [TITLE] at [ORGANIZATION]. As you know, we have been contracted by Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA) to evaluate their Maternal Health Portfolio Project. We are interested in speaking with you today to learn more about the Maternal Health grant programs you work with and your experience managing awardees as their Project Officer.

The overall purpose of the Maternal Health Portfolio evaluation is to assess the effectiveness of awardees’ activities, barriers and facilitators to implementation, opportunities for scaling and spreading effective program interventions, whether the programs address health equity, and the overall impact of the portfolio on maternal health outcomes. The interview questions will focus on overall characteristics of the program, activities that are being implemented, barriers and facilitators to implementation, health equity approaches, experiences receiving technical assistance, scaling and spreading activities, lessons learned, and preliminary findings from the program evaluation.

Our discussion today will last about 90 minutes. Information from this interview will be included in documents associated with the Maternal Health Portfolio evaluation, including interim and final reports, special topic papers, and presentations. While we will not use your name or any others in these reports, it may be possible to identify you through your position or through other details that you share in this interview. The information we gather will help HRSA to understand contextual factors and potential indicators for scaling and replicating your programs activities.

If you have questions about the study, please contact the Maternal Health Data Lead, Theresa Chapple-McGruder, 301-594-4421.

Do you agree to participate in this interview?

If "Yes" then proceed.

If No: Thank you for your time. [Stop the interview].

My colleague [NAME] is also on the phone and will take notes during our conversation. We will also create an audio recording of the interview. We will use the recording to create a transcript to inform our report. The transcript will not include your name or contact information. We will delete the recording at the end of the project.

Do you agree to have this interview recorded?

If respondent says "yes" then proceed. BEGIN RECORDING.

If "no" then say: "That's fine. You may still participate in the interview. Please be patient as I take notes." DO NOT BEGIN RECORDING.

Interview Protocol (ALL YEARS)

During this interview we will discuss each of the awardees that you oversee. I will ask you a series of questions about one awardee at a time, including your assessment of the implementation of their program activities.

Section 1: Activities

Now, we are going to talk about how [NAME OF AWARDEE] is implementing each activity.

Let’s start with [AWARDEE NAME]:

Based on program documents, including the grant application, program progress report, and awardee interview, the [AWARDEE NAME] program is implementing the following activities [insert activities]. Is this correct? Have there been any changes?

We would like to know more about how the awardee is implementing these activities. In the next part of the interview, I am going to ask a set of questions about each activity.

1. What progress has [AWARDEE NAME] made on implementing their program?

   1. [Probe about each activity, if needed]

2. What, if any, facilitators has [AWARDEE NAME] indicated that they experienced while implementing their program?

   1. [Probe about each activity, if needed]

3. What barriers has [AWARDEE NAME] indicated that they have experienced while implementing their program?

   1. [Probe about each activity, if needed]

4. Out of all of the activities that [AWARDEE NAME] is implementing, which do you feel are the most innovative? Why? Prompt if respondent is unsure: method or approach; target population; geographic location; implementation setting; targeted health outcome

The following set of questions will ONLY be asked for the following activities:

1. Implementing AIM bundles

2. Interventions to educate patients and providers about post-partum warning signs

3. Interventions to address substance use and mental health

4. Interventions to improve or redesign post-partum visits

5. Implicit bias training

6. Implementing provider trainings

7. Interventions that utilize telehealth

5. Do you think the [NAME OF ACTIVITY] can be scaled up and implemented at the [REGIONAL/STATE/NATIONAL LEVEL]?

   1. Please describe why or why not.

   2. Do you anticipate any challenges in doing so?

6. Do you think the [NAME OF ACTIVITY] can be implemented in other contexts, such as locations, with fewer partner organizations, few or no maternal mortality policies or workgroups, etc.?

   1. Please describe why or why not.

   2. Do you anticipate any challenges in doing so?

Section 2: Health Equity

7. How is [AWARDEE NAME] addressing health equity?

Prompt if respondent is unsure: addressing bias among health care providers; reducing barriers to accessing care among target populations; quality improvement initiatives to improve quality of care for target populations

8. To the best of your knowledge, do you think these activities will have the potential to be or have been effective at improving health equity for the target population(s)? If so, how?

9. Tell me about any challenges with addressing health equity among the awardee?

The Evaluator will repeat all questions in Sections 1 and 2 for each awardee that the Project Officer oversees.

Section 3: Project Officer Insights into Evaluation

10. How would you describe the awardees’ experience implementing the program and the challenges they have encountered with evaluation?

    1. Have the awardees experienced challenges with evaluating their program (e.g., design, data collection, analysis, and reporting)?

    2. Do you foresee any future challenges regarding your awardees’ evaluations? What are they? Which awardees?

11. Before we wrap up is there any other information you would like to share about your experience with your awardees?

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