Completed Projects
MRR 01-214 Evaluation of VA Practice Matters as a Strategy for Influencing Physician Behavior
Martin P. Charns, DBA
VA New England Health Care System ; Boston, MA
Funding Period: October 2001 - March 2003
BACKGROUND / RATIONALE:
We are conducting an evaluation of our information dissemination activities, beginning with an assessment
of VA Practice Matters. VA Practice Matters is a publication that reports periodically on current
evidence-based practices for providers in different specialties.
OBJECTIVE(S):
Our evaluation has two objectives:
To assess the value of disseminating VA Practice Matters to care
providers as a strategy for changing clinical practice.
To determine whether some care providers are more likely than others to adopt the recommendations
contained in VA Practice Matters in relation to their personal characteristics and practice setting.
METHODS:
We will utilize a two-stage methodology. In the first phase, two months after we send out the relevant VA
Practice Matters, we will send out a questionnaire to each physician and nurse practitioner in our sample
with questions focused on:
The individual's awareness of the recommendations included in the VA Practice Matters;
The individual's agreement with the recommendations;
The extent to which the individual has adopted, adhered to, and/or diffused the recommended practices;
and the individual's exposure to other sources of information that may have influenced practice patterns.
In the second phase, we will conduct in-depth telephone interviews with a subsample of responding
physicians whose responses indicated that they had adopted the recommendations contained in the
relevant VA Practice Matters.
FINDINGS / RESULTS:
None at this time.
STATUS:
In progress
IMPACT:
No data available at this time.
PUBLICATIONS: None at this time.
DRAs: Health Services and Systems
DREs: Communication and Decision Making
Keywords: Behavior (provider); Dissemination
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