Related Experiment Videos
Continuing medical education: what delivery format do physicians prefer?
Nancy Stancic1, Patricia Dolan Mullen, Alexander V Prokhorov
1Department of Behavioral Science, University of Texas M.D. Anderson Cancer Center, 1515 Holcombe Blvd., Box 243, Houston, TX 77030-4730, USA.
The Journal of Continuing Education in the Health Professions
|October 8, 2003
Summary
Physicians prefer live lectures for continuing medical education (CME) on tobacco cessation, despite evidence that this format yields minimal behavioral change. Understanding physician preferences is key for effective smoking cessation interventions.
Area of Science:
- Medical Education
- Public Health
- Tobacco Cessation
Background:
- Physicians play a crucial role in preventing smoking-related deaths through cessation counseling.
- Many physicians do not actively intervene in patient tobacco use.
- A continuing medical education (CME) program, 'Nicotine Dependence Across the Lifespan,' was created to address this gap.
Purpose of the Study:
- To assess physician participation in a tobacco cessation CME program.
- To identify factors influencing physicians' decisions to engage in CME.
- To examine the relationship between physician demographics and CME format preferences.
Main Methods:
- A free CME program was offered to Texas physicians in rural areas with high smoking rates.
- Delivery formats included live lectures, videotapes, and web-based training.
- Data collected on physician demographics, participation motivations, and format preferences.
Main Results:
- Four key factors (professional development, cost, personal control, convenience) explained 76.9% of participation variance.
- Live lectures were the most preferred CME format among physicians.
- Format preference showed no significant difference across age, gender, race/ethnicity, or location.
Conclusions:
- Live lectures remain the preferred CME format for physicians in rural Texas.
- Research indicates that lecture-based CME leads to the least amount of behavioral change.
- Optimizing CME delivery is essential for improving physician-led smoking cessation efforts.