Preliminary effectiveness of the ACT SMART implementation toolkit: facilitating evidence-based practice implementation in community-based autism organizations

Background: Evidence-based practice (EBP) use is varied in autism spectrum disorder community-based organizations (ASD-CBOs) in the United States. Aim: The ACT SMART Implementation Toolkit-a multi-faceted implementation strategy guiding teams through implementation phases-was pilot tested to assess its preliminary effectiveness in increasing EBP use within ASD-CBOs. Method: Six ASD-CBOs participated, and five completed all Toolkit phases. Supervisors and direct providers completed an agency assessment pre- and post-pilot reporting their use of the selected EBP. Results: Effect sizes, examining meaningful changes in reported EBP utilization from pre- to post-pilot, found small effect sizes for supervisor-reported, supervisor-report of direct provider's use, and for direct provider-reported EBP use. Conclusions: Results indicate an increase in reported EBP use post-pilot and signal potential effectiveness of the ACT SMART Toolkit to yield provider-reported behavioral changes. This is the first multi-faceted implementation strategy designed specifically for ASD-CBOs, and findings support its facilitation of EBP uptake to improve community care for autistic individuals.

Automated summary

The pilot study evaluated the effectiveness of the ACT SMART Implementation Toolkit in promoting evidence-based practice (EBP) use in autism spectrum disorder community-based organizations (ASD-CBOs). The results indicated that the toolkit increased EBP utilization and improved community care for autistic individuals.