DEVELOPMENT, IMPLEMENTATION, EVALUATION OF A TRAINING INTERVENTION FOR PRIMARY CARE PROVIDERS ON BRIEF BEHAVIOUR CHANGE COUNSELLING, AND ASSESSMENT

Intro and Objective Unhealthy behaviour is a key modifiable factor that underlies much of the global burden of disease and primary care morbidity. Chronic diseases such as heart disease, type 2 diabetes, lung diseases and some cancers are linked to underlying behavioural issues such as tobacco smoking, alcohol abuse, physical inactivity and unhealthy eating. Evidence shows that brief behaviour change counselling (BBCC) by primary care providers (PCP) can be effective in helping patients to change risky lifestyle behaviours. However, the capacity of South African PCP’s to educate and counsel patients on lifestyle modification is generally poor. The aim of this research was to analyse the current situation, design, develop, implement and evaluate the effectiveness of a training intervention for PCPs to offer patients BBCC on the lifestyle risk factors associated with NCDs Method The ADDIE model provided a conceptual model for the research. The steps of the ADDIE are: Analysis of learning needs, the Design and Development of the training programme, its Implementation and Evaluation. Results and Conclusion Current training on behaviour change counselling for primary care providers in the Western Cape is not sufficient to achieve competence in clinical practice. A best practice BBCC training programme was designed, developed and implemented in our context, targeting either clinical nurse practitioners or primary care doctors. The training was effective at changing PCPs clinical practice, in the short term. Training also changed PCPs perception of their ability to offer BBCC, and increased their confidence to overcome certain barriers to implementation, for instance time constraints