Table 3.

Included studies – quality assessment

		Qualitative					Qualitative					Mixed method
Type-of-study	Methodological-quality-criteria	Bowen [22]	Dobbins [15]	Farmer [16]	Higgins [17]	Mitton [18]	Belkhodja [27]	Dobbins [24]	Dobbins [26]	Jbilou [28]	Wilson [21]	Ham [25]	Niedzwiedzka [19]	Weatherly [20]	McDiarmid [23]
Screening Questions	Are there clear qualitative and quantitative research questions (or objectives), or a clear mixed methods question (or objective)?	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes
	Do the collected data allow the research question (objective) to be appropriately addressed?	Yes	Yes	Yes	Unclear	Unclear	Unclear	Unclear	Yes	Unclear	Unclear	Yes	Yes	Unclear	Unclear
1. Qualitative	1.1. Are the sources of qualitative data (archives, documents, informants, observations) relevant to address the research question (objective)?	Yes	Yes	Yes	Unclear	Unclear	Not Applicable	Not Applicable	Not Applicable	Not Applicable	Not Applicable	Unclear	Yes	Unclear	Yes
	1.2. Is the process for analyzing qualitative data relevant to address the research question (objective)?	Yes	Yes	Yes	Unclear	Unclear	Not Applicable	Not Applicable	Not Applicable	Not Applicable	Not Applicable	Unclear	Unclear	Unclear	Unclear
	1.3. Is appropriate consideration given to how findings relate to the context, e.g., the setting, in which the data were collected?	Unclear	Unclear	Unclear	Unclear	Unclear	Not Applicable	Not Applicable	Not Applicable	Not Applicable	Not Applicable	Unclear	Unclear	Unclear	Unclear
	1.4. Is appropriate consideration given to how findings relate to researchers’ influence, e.g., through their interactions with participants?	No	No	No	No	No	Not Applicable	Not Applicable	Not Applicable	Not Applicable	Not Applicable	Unclear	Unclear	Unclear	Unclear
4. Quantitative Descriptive	4.1. Is the sampling strategy relevant to address the quantitative research question (quantitative aspect of the mixed methods question)?	Not Applicable	Not Applicable	Not Applicable	Not Applicable	Not Applicable	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	Unclear	Yes	Yes	Yes
	4.2. Is the sample representative of the population understudy?	Not Applicable	Not Applicable	Not Applicable	Not Applicable	Not Applicable	Unclear	Unclear	Unclear	Unclear	Unclear	Unclear	Unclear	Yes	Unclear
	4.3. Are measurements appropriate (clear origin, or validity known, or standard instrument)?	Not Applicable	Not Applicable	Not Applicable	Not Applicable	Not Applicable	Unclear	Yes	Yes	Unclear	Yes	Unclear	Yes	Unclear	Yes
	4.4. Is there an acceptable response rate (60% or above)?	Not Applicable	Not Applicable	Not Applicable	Not Applicable	Not Applicable	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	No	Unclear	Unclear	Yes	No
5. Mixed Methods	5.1. Is the mixed methods research design relevant to address the qualitative and quantitative research questions (or objectives), or the qualitative and quantitative aspects of the mixed methods question (or objective)?	Not Applicable	Not Applicable	Not Applicable	Not Applicable	Not Applicable	Not Applicable	Not Applicable	Not Applicable	Not Applicable	Not Applicable	Yes	Unclear	Yes	Unclear
	5.2. Is the integration of qualitative and quantitative data (or results) relevant to address the research question (objective)?	Not Applicable	Not Applicable	Not Applicable	Not Applicable	Not Applicable	Not Applicable	Not Applicable	Not Applicable	Not Applicable	Not Applicable	Yes	Unclear	Yes	Unclear
	5.3. Is appropriate consideration given to the limitations associated with this integration, e.g., the divergence of qualitative and quantitative data (or results) in a triangulation design?	Not Applicable	Not Applicable	Not Applicable	Not Applicable	Not Applicable	Not Applicable	Not Applicable	Not Applicable	Not Applicable	Not Applicable	Unclear	Unclear	Yes	Unclear