Background An investigation of Disability Support Workers’ (DSWs) psychosocial work safety showed poorer health and safety outcomes than norm groups. Numerous safety interventions derived from a work safety climate measure and stakeholder feedback were identified, with seven translated into practice and evaluated. At evaluation, roll-out varied from organisation-wide implementation to implementation that was restricted to limited work-sites. Successful implementation of interventions was facilitated by wide safety benefit consensus, strong overt management commitment, and use of change champions. Findings supported the importance of factors identified in research for successful change implementation, but less research had been reported about ensuring longer-term intervention maintenance and/or sustainability. Thus, a follow-up study used and evaluated a model to understand the key factors required for the successful implementation, maintenance and sustainability of work safety interventions.

Method Semi-structured interviews were used to follow the seven implemented work safety interventions to identify factors facilitating or hindering their implementation, maintenance, and sustainability.

Results Numerous influential intervention and organisational factors were identified. These were conceptualised in the model as: 1) intervention attributes; 2) implementation process characteristics; 3) leadership behaviours and characteristics; and 4) the internal and external organisational context.

Conclusions Findings suggested no ‘one size fits all’ approach to factors critical for implementing, maintaining and/or sustaining these successful interventions. Rather, relevant factors and combinations of factors varied in importance across interventions and over the course of the intervention implementation.

Learning Outcomes Findings support the need to identify and address factors facilitating and/or hindering the longer-term sustainability of implemented safety recommendations.