PMID- 38048151
OWN - NLM
STAT- PubMed-not-MEDLINE
LR  - 20231221
IS  - 1929-0748 (Print)
IS  - 1929-0748 (Electronic)
IS  - 1929-0748 (Linking)
VI  - 12
DP  - 2023 Dec 4
TI  - Training Australian Dietitians in Behavior Change Techniques Through Educational 
      Workshops: Protocol for a Randomized Controlled Trial.
PG  - e49723
LID - 10.2196/49723 [doi]
LID - e49723
AB  - BACKGROUND: The use of education alone as a technique to change behavior in 
      interventions is usually insufficient, particularly in health interventions. 
      Behavior change techniques have been shown to be effective in fostering positive 
      changes in health behaviors such as diet and physical activity. The upskilling of 
      health professionals can increase perceived capability and motivation toward 
      eliciting change in clients' behaviors. However, to date, dietitians have 
      received limited training in behavior change and have expressed a need for 
      continuous professional development. OBJECTIVE: The study objectives are to (1) 
      develop and evaluate the effectiveness and acceptability of two 2-hour behavior 
      change workshops on changing dietitians behavior (ie, range of behavior change 
      techniques used and frequency of use) across 3 time points; (2) determine if 
      participation in these workshops will elicit changes in dietitians' perceived 
      capability, opportunity, and motivation toward using behavior change techniques; 
      and (3) determine the acceptability of the training and its application in 
      practice by dietitians. METHODS: We will recruit registered dietitians (N=140) in 
      Australia to participate in this randomized controlled trial. Participants will 
      be randomly assigned to either the intervention or 3-month waitlist control 
      condition and complete outcome measures at 3 time points: baseline, after the 
      workshop, and follow-up at 3 months. Both groups will complete 2 workshops on 
      behavior change that are guided by the COM-B (Capability, Opportunity, 
      Motivation, and Behavior) Model and embedded with behavior change techniques. The 
      primary outcome is changes in behavior, (ie, the range of behavior change 
      techniques used and their frequency of use). Secondary outcomes include changes 
      in perceived capability, opportunity, motivation, and preparedness as a health 
      professional toward delivering behavior change techniques. The acceptability of 
      the workshops will also be assessed after the workshop through the postworkshop 
      survey and semistructured interviews. A series of 2-way repeated measures ANOVAs 
      and regressions will be used. Qualitative data will be analyzed using thematic 
      analysis. RESULTS: Participant recruitment commenced in June 2023. The results of 
      the study are expected to be published in November 2024. The results will allow 
      us to assess comparisons between the intervention and waitlist control groups, as 
      well as changes in perceived capability, opportunity, motivation, and 
      preparedness over a 3-month period. It will also provide an understanding of the 
      acceptability of the training as a form of continuous professional development 
      for dietitians. CONCLUSIONS: If found to be effective, the results of this 2-arm 
      randomized controlled trial will guide future training and continuous 
      professional development for health professionals in changing behavior in 
      practice. Our findings will contribute to our understanding of the application of 
      behavior change techniques in practice with clients and identify components of 
      COM-B where dietitians may need future support. TRIAL REGISTRATION: 
      ACTRN12623000525684; https://www.anzctr.org.au/ACTRN12623000525684.aspx. 
      INTERNATIONAL REGISTERED REPORT IDENTIFIER (IRRID): PRR1-10.2196/49723.
CI  - (c)Hayley Breare, Barbara Mullan, Deborah A Kerr, Chloe Maxwell-Smith. Originally 
      published in JMIR Research Protocols (https://www.researchprotocols.org), 
      04.12.2023.
FAU - Breare, Hayley
AU  - Breare H
AUID- ORCID: 0000-0001-9523-8588
AD  - School of Population Health, Curtin University, Bentley, Australia.
AD  - Behavioural Science and Health Research Group, Curtin University, Bentley, 
      Australia.
FAU - Mullan, Barbara
AU  - Mullan B
AUID- ORCID: 0000-0002-0177-8899
AD  - School of Population Health, Curtin University, Bentley, Australia.
AD  - Behavioural Science and Health Research Group, Curtin University, Bentley, 
      Australia.
FAU - Kerr, Deborah A
AU  - Kerr DA
AUID- ORCID: 0000-0002-1094-1299
AD  - Behavioural Science and Health Research Group, Curtin University, Bentley, 
      Australia.
FAU - Maxwell-Smith, Chloe
AU  - Maxwell-Smith C
AUID- ORCID: 0000-0003-1694-2732
AD  - School of Population Health, Curtin University, Bentley, Australia.
AD  - Behavioural Science and Health Research Group, Curtin University, Bentley, 
      Australia.
LA  - eng
PT  - Journal Article
DEP - 20231204
PL  - Canada
TA  - JMIR Res Protoc
JT  - JMIR research protocols
JID - 101599504
PMC - PMC10728788
OTO - NOTNLM
OT  - BCT
OT  - COM-B
OT  - behavior change
OT  - continuing education
OT  - dietitians
OT  - health professional
OT  - intervention
OT  - professional development
OT  - psychology
OT  - randomized controlled trial
OT  - training
OT  - workshop
COIS- Conflicts of Interest: None declared.
EDAT- 2023/12/04 12:43
MHDA- 2023/12/04 12:44
PMCR- 2023/12/04
CRDT- 2023/12/04 11:53
PHST- 2023/06/07 00:00 [received]
PHST- 2023/09/05 00:00 [accepted]
PHST- 2023/08/20 00:00 [revised]
PHST- 2023/12/04 12:44 [medline]
PHST- 2023/12/04 12:43 [pubmed]
PHST- 2023/12/04 11:53 [entrez]
PHST- 2023/12/04 00:00 [pmc-release]
AID - v12i1e49723 [pii]
AID - 10.2196/49723 [doi]
PST - epublish
SO  - JMIR Res Protoc. 2023 Dec 4;12:e49723. doi: 10.2196/49723.