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Increasing response rates in physicians' mail surveys: an experimental study.
B Maheux1, C Legault, J Lambert
1Department of Social and Preventive Medicine, Université de Montréal, Québec, Canada.
American Journal of Public Health
|May 1, 1989
Summary
Obtaining physician survey responses is challenging. Personalized mailouts and handwritten thank you notes significantly boosted physician participation rates in a Quebec study.
Area of Science:
- Medical research methodology
- Survey research in healthcare
Background:
- Physician mail surveys face declining response rates.
- Effective strategies are needed to improve physician participation.
Purpose of the Study:
- To evaluate the impact of two distinct techniques on physician survey response rates.
- To identify methods for enhancing physician engagement in research.
Main Methods:
- A controlled study involving 604 Quebec physicians who initially did not respond.
- Testing a handwritten thank you note and a personalized mailout package.
- Comparison of response rates against control groups.
Main Results:
- A handwritten thank you note increased response rates by 40.7%.
- A personalized mailout package improved response rates by 53.1%.
- Both methods demonstrated significant improvements over standard mailings.
Conclusions:
- Personalized approaches and simple acknowledgments can substantially improve physician survey response rates.
- These findings offer practical strategies for researchers seeking to increase physician participation.
- Optimizing survey delivery methods is crucial for robust medical research.