Table 3.

Impact evaluation outcomes.

Key outcome	Specific findings
Staff across multiple service settings consistently support the use of technology as part of their work; however, they also list digital literacy of both service users and health professionals as well as service readiness for change as potential barriers to widespread adoption [10].	A total of 81% (38/47) of health professionals and service administrators reported benefits of using technology as part of their work. Most staff (26/45, 57%) questioned whether their service users’ digital literacy was sufficient to use technology as part of their mental health care; however, of potential users, young people, who were considered digital natives, were expected to be most likely to access and adopt technologies as part of care. Although approximately two-thirds (27/45, 60%) of staff indicated that their service’s policies support the belief that technologies can improve service user outcomes by providing more efficient and effective care, only 44% (20/45) of service staff indicated that their service was ready to implement new technologies to enhance mental health care. Furthermore, only 53% (24/45) of staff reported that their service actively encourages the integration of technologies as part of standard care.
There must be organizational leadership (PHNa-level decision-making) as well as a local champion at the service level to support a successful implementation [4].	Qualitative feedback was collected from 40 staff from across 5 headspace centers in the Central Eastern PHN who were involved in implementing a prototype of a web-based mental health clinic, known as the Mental Health eClinic. Their feedback highlighted the significant benefit of both (1) high-level endorsement and coordination at the PHN level and 2) the presence and engagement of on-the-ground leadership to assist in solving day-to-day implementation challenges [4]. Qualitative analysis of 70 logs completed by on-the-ground implementation officers at 5 headspace services implementing the InnoWell Platform showed a consistent interest among service staff in implementing the InnoWell Platform as a demand management tool and to provide better care; however, a lack of strong and deliberate leadership was highlighted as a barrier to change. Notably, this finding did not change appreciably in response to COVID-19 [47]. To facilitate a successful implementation, service leadership need to establish clear strategies to mitigate potential barriers to implementation identified by on-the-ground staff responsible for driving the implementation [10].
Health professionals are often confident about the effectiveness of their current service models (ie, business as usual) and express reluctance to change their usual practices [10].	A primary implementation barrier identified by health professionals relates to concerns that digital tools could replace clinical expertise; however, all participants denied this as a personal concern.

^aPHN: Primary Health Network.