Equity in Intervention Design: A Workshop Report and Recommendations for Intervention Planners

There is a demand for new interventions to address complex social and political challenges arising from racism, colonisation, and oppression. To achieve this, equity must be at the forefront of program planning and decision making. Intervention Mapping is one of the most widely used program planning, design, implementation, and evaluation approaches. While the steps, tasks and core processes of Intervention Mapping provide a clear rationale and framework to develop programs that address equity, there is limited guidance and examples of how to operationalise this in practice. To address this gap, we conducted a qualitative study through a two-day workshop in Melbourne, Australia with multi-disciplinary practitioners and leaders from health, education and social care organisations and government departments, entitled “Equity in Program Development”. The workshop focused on Intervention Mapping Step 1: needs assessment, Step 2: define program outcomes and objectives, Step 3: program design and Step 4: program production. Using these steps the workshop aimed to: (1) explore how equity is considered and operationalised in participants’ organisations; (2) identify the enablers and barriers for developing and delivering equitable programs; and (3) generate practical guidance for program planners, including actions and guiding questions to embed equity within Intervention Mapping Steps 1 to 4. Transcribed data from small group discussions and individual written reflections were analysed thematically using a deductive approach guided by the research objectives. Actions to include equity in program planning included intentionally planning for equity, building equitable teams, skills and processes, generating ideas for embedding equity from other approaches, allowing time and space, leadership and organisational support, accessing resources and support, and shifting policy and funding processes. Based on the feedback and insights shared during this workshop, an initial Intervention Mapping - Equity (IM-Equity) Tool was developed for program planners.