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Why has postal prescriber feedback no substantial impact on general practitioners' prescribing practice? A
Jens Søndergaard1, Morten Andersen, Jakob Kragstrup
1Research Unit of Clinical Pharmacology, University of Southern Denmark, Odense University, Denmark. j-soendergaard@cekfo.sdu.dk
European Journal of Clinical Pharmacology
|May 16, 2002
Summary
Prescriber feedback sent to general practitioners (GPs) often fails to change prescribing habits. GPs desire personalized data and advice to improve patient care, rather than unsolicited aggregated information.
Area of Science:
- Health Services Research
- General Practice
- Medical Education
Background:
- Prescriber feedback is a strategy to influence physician prescribing patterns.
- Previous interventions using prescriber feedback have shown limited impact on general practitioners' (GPs) prescribing behavior.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate the underlying reasons why prescriber feedback interventions do not effectively alter general practitioners' prescribing patterns.
- To identify factors influencing the impact and acceptance of prescriber feedback among GPs.
Main Methods:
- Conducted semi-structured interviews with general practitioners (GPs) who had participated in prescriber feedback intervention studies.
- Utilized audiotaped interviews, full transcription, and repeated thematic analysis to identify patterns in GP perceptions.
Main Results:
- GPs reported no change in prescribing practices following receipt of unsolicited feedback.
- Feedback was perceived as an infringement on autonomy, with GPs preferring to control data content.
- Difficulty in interpreting aggregated data and mistrust in data validity were significant barriers.
- GPs desired patient-specific information and actionable advice for optimizing therapy.
Conclusions:
- Postal prescriber feedback, especially when anonymized, is ineffective due to lack of motivation and failure to address barriers.
- Requested feedback, including patient identities and specific therapeutic advice, holds greater potential for improving prescribing practices.