Success with men's educational group appointments (MEGA): subjective improvements in patient education

Men have a higher age-adjusted death rate from many of the leading causes of death, compared with women. Avoidance of health care and unhealthy behavior contribute to premature death among men. The Lahey Clinic recently initiated a program, the Men's Educational Group Appointment (MEGA), which capitalizes on the potential benefits of group dynamics in an effort to educate men about preventative health. We hypothesized that putting men into a group setting for the educational portion of the visit would improve information exchange and patient learning. During 12 months, 261 men between the ages of 22 and 67 were evaluated. A survey designed to address both patient satisfaction and patients' perceptions regarding how much they learned was administered to all patients following the MEGA session. We identified high patient satisfaction with the MEGA model. This study illustrates the potential utility of the group model for improving patient education regarding health maintenance among men.