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      Interventions to improve antimicrobial prescribing of doctors in training (IMPACT): a realist review

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          Abstract

          Background

          Interventions to improve the antimicrobial prescribing practices of doctors have been implemented widely to curtail the emergence and spread of antimicrobial resistance, but have been met with varying levels of success.

          Objectives

          This study aimed to generate an in-depth understanding of how antimicrobial prescribing interventions ‘work’ (or do not work) for doctors in training by taking into account the wider context in which prescribing decisions are enacted.

          Design

          The review followed a realist approach to evidence synthesis, which uses an interpretive, theory-driven analysis of qualitative, quantitative and mixed-methods data from relevant studies.

          Setting

          Primary and secondary care.

          Participants

          Not applicable.

          Interventions

          Studies related to antimicrobial prescribing for doctors in training.

          Main outcome measures

          Not applicable.

          Data sources

          EMBASE (via Ovid), MEDLINE (via Ovid), MEDLINE In-Process & Other Non-Indexed Citations (via Ovid), PsycINFO (via Ovid), Web of Science core collection limited to Science Citation Index Expanded (SCIE) and Conference Proceedings Citation Index – Science (CPCI-S) (via Thomson Reuters), Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials (CENTRAL), Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews, the Health Technology Assessment (HTA) database (all via The Cochrane Library), Applied Social Sciences Index and Abstracts (ASSIA) (via ProQuest), Google Scholar (Google Inc., Mountain View, CA, USA) and expert recommendations.

          Review methods

          Clearly bounded searches of electronic databases were supplemented by citation tracking and grey literature. Following quality standards for realist reviews, the retrieved articles were systematically screened and iteratively analysed to develop theoretically driven explanations. A programme theory was produced with input from a stakeholder group consisting of practitioners and patient representatives.

          Results

          A total of 131 articles were included. The overarching programme theory developed from the analysis of these articles explains how and why doctors in training decide to passively comply with or actively follow (1) seniors’ prescribing habits, (2) the way seniors take into account prescribing aids and seek the views of other health professionals and (3) the way seniors negotiate patient expectations. The programme theory also explains what drives willingness or reluctance to ask questions about antimicrobial prescribing or to challenge the decisions made by seniors. The review outlines how these outcomes result from complex inter-relationships between the contexts of practice doctors in training are embedded in (hierarchical relationships, powerful prescribing norms, unclear roles and responsibilities, implicit expectations about knowledge levels and application in practice) and the mechanisms triggered in these contexts (fear of criticism and individual responsibility, reputation management, position in the clinical team and appearing competent). Drawing on these findings, we set out explicit recommendations for optimal tailoring, design and implementation of antimicrobial prescribing interventions targeted at doctors in training.

          Limitations

          Most articles included in the review discussed hospital-based, rather than primary, care. In cases when few data were available to fully capture all the nuances between context, mechanisms and outcomes, we have been explicit about the strength of our arguments.

          Conclusions

          This review contributes to our understanding of how antimicrobial prescribing interventions for doctors in training can be better embedded in the hierarchical and interprofessional dynamics of different health-care settings.

          Future work

          More work is required to understand how interprofessional support for doctors in training can contribute to appropriate prescribing in the context of hierarchical dynamics.

          Study registration

          This study is registered as PROSPERO CRD42015017802.

          Funding

          The National Institute for Health Research Health Services and Delivery Research programme.

          Related collections

          Most cited references135

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          Communication failures: an insidious contributor to medical mishaps.

          To describe how communication failures contribute to many medical mishaps. In late 1999, a sample of 26 residents stratified by medical specialty, year of residency, and gender was randomly selected from a population of 85 residents at a 600-bed U.S. teaching hospital. The study design involved semistructured face-to-face interviews with the residents about their routine work environments and activities, the medical mishaps in which they recently had been involved, and a description of both the individual and organizational contributory factors. The themes reported here emerged from inductive analyses of the data. Residents reported a total of 70 mishap incidents. Aspects of "communication" and "patient management" were the two most commonly cited contributing factors. Residents described themselves as embedded in a complex network of relationships, playing a pivotal role in patient management vis-à-vis other medical staff and health care providers from within the hospital and from the community. Recurring patterns of communication difficulties occur within these relationships and appear to be associated with the occurrence of medical mishaps. The occurrence of everyday medical mishaps in this study is associated with faulty communication; but, poor communication is not simply the result of poor transmission or exchange of information. Communication failures are far more complex and relate to hierarchical differences, concerns with upward influence, conflicting roles and role ambiguity, and interpersonal power and conflict. A clearer understanding of these dynamics highlights possibilities for appropriate interventions in medical education and in health care organizations aimed at improving patient safety.
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            Is Open Access

            Provision of social norm feedback to high prescribers of antibiotics in general practice: a pragmatic national randomised controlled trial

            Summary Background Unnecessary antibiotic prescribing contributes to antimicrobial resistance. In this trial, we aimed to reduce unnecessary prescriptions of antibiotics by general practitioners (GPs) in England. Methods In this randomised, 2 × 2 factorial trial, publicly available databases were used to identify GP practices whose prescribing rate for antibiotics was in the top 20% for their National Health Service (NHS) Local Area Team. Eligible practices were randomly assigned (1:1) into two groups by computer-generated allocation sequence, stratified by NHS Local Area Team. Participants, but not investigators, were blinded to group assignment. On Sept 29, 2014, every GP in the feedback intervention group was sent a letter from England's Chief Medical Officer and a leaflet on antibiotics for use with patients. The letter stated that the practice was prescribing antibiotics at a higher rate than 80% of practices in its NHS Local Area Team. GPs in the control group received no communication. The sample was re-randomised into two groups, and in December, 2014, GP practices were either sent patient-focused information that promoted reduced use of antibiotics or received no communication. The primary outcome measure was the rate of antibiotic items dispensed per 1000 weighted population, controlling for past prescribing. Analysis was by intention to treat. This trial is registered with the ISRCTN registry, number ISRCTN32349954, and has been completed. Findings Between Sept 8 and Sept 26, 2014, we recruited and assigned 1581 GP practices to feedback intervention (n=791) or control (n=790) groups. Letters were sent to 3227 GPs in the intervention group. Between October, 2014, and March, 2015, the rate of antibiotic items dispensed per 1000 population was 126·98 (95% CI 125·68–128·27) in the feedback intervention group and 131·25 (130·33–132·16) in the control group, a difference of 4·27 (3·3%; incidence rate ratio [IRR] 0·967 [95% CI 0·957–0·977]; p<0·0001), representing an estimated 73 406 fewer antibiotic items dispensed. In December, 2014, GP practices were re-assigned to patient-focused intervention (n=777) or control (n=804) groups. The patient-focused intervention did not significantly affect the primary outcome measure between December, 2014, and March, 2015 (antibiotic items dispensed per 1000 population: 135·00 [95% CI 133·77–136·22] in the patient-focused intervention group and 133·98 [133·06–134·90] in the control group; IRR for difference between groups 1·01, 95% CI 1·00–1·02; p=0·105). Interpretation Social norm feedback from a high-profile messenger can substantially reduce antibiotic prescribing at low cost and at national scale; this outcome makes it a worthwhile addition to antimicrobial stewardship programmes. Funding Public Health England.
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              Audit and feedback: effects on professional practice and health care outcomes.

              Audit and feedback continues to be widely used as a strategy to improve professional practice. It appears logical that healthcare professionals would be prompted to modify their practice if given feedback that their clinical practice was inconsistent with that of their peers or accepted guidelines. Yet, audit and feedback has not consistently been found to be effective. To assess the effects of audit and feedback on the practice of healthcare professionals and patient outcomes. We searched the Cochrane Effective Practice and Organisation of Care Group's register and pending file up to January 2004. Randomised trials of audit and feedback (defined as any summary of clinical performance over a specified period of time) that reported objectively measured professional practice in a healthcare setting or healthcare outcomes. Two reviewers independently extracted data and assessed study quality. Quantitative (meta-regression), visual and qualitative analyses were undertaken. For each comparison we calculated the risk difference (RD) and risk ratio (RR), adjusted for baseline compliance when possible, for dichotomous outcomes and the percentage and the percent change relative to the control group average after the intervention, adjusted for baseline performance when possible, for continuous outcomes. We investigated the following factors as possible explanations for the variation in the effectiveness of interventions across comparisons: the type of intervention (audit and feedback alone, audit and feedback with educational meetings, or multifaceted interventions that included audit and feedback), the intensity of the audit and feedback, the complexity of the targeted behaviour, the seriousness of the outcome, baseline compliance and study quality. Thirty new studies were added to this update, and a total of 118 studies are included. In the primary analysis 88 comparisons from 72 studies were included that compared any intervention in which audit and feedback is a component compared to no intervention. For dichotomous outcomes the adjusted risk difference of compliance with desired practice varied from - 0.16 (a 16 % absolute decrease in compliance) to 0.70 (a 70% increase in compliance) (median = 0.05, inter-quartile range = 0.03 to 0.11) and the adjusted risk ratio varied from 0.71 to 18.3 (median = 1.08, inter-quartile range = 0.99 to 1.30). For continuous outcomes the adjusted percent change relative to control varied from -0.10 (a 10 % absolute decrease in compliance) to 0.68 (a 68% increase in compliance) (median = 0.16, inter-quartile range = 0.05 to 0.37). Low baseline compliance with recommended practice and higher intensity of audit and feedback were associated with larger adjusted risk ratios (greater effectiveness) across studies. Audit and feedback can be effective in improving professional practice. When it is effective, the effects are generally small to moderate. The relative effectiveness of audit and feedback is likely to be greater when baseline adherence to recommended practice is low and when feedback is delivered more intensively.
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                Author and article information

                Journal
                Health Services and Delivery Research
                Health Serv Deliv Res
                National Institute for Health Research
                2050-4349
                2050-4357
                February 2018
                February 2018
                : 6
                : 10
                : 1-136
                Affiliations
                [1 ]Nuffield Department of Primary Care Health Sciences, University of Oxford, Oxford, UK
                [2 ]Centre for Research in Professional Learning, University of Exeter, Exeter, UK
                [3 ]National Institute for Health Research Collaboration for Leadership in Applied Health Research and Care for the South West Peninsula, Institute of Health Research, University of Exeter Medical School, Exeter, UK
                [4 ]Collaboration for the Advancement of Medical Education Research and Assessment, Peninsula Schools of Medicine and Dentistry, Plymouth University, Plymouth, UK
                Article
                10.3310/hsdr06100
                29489141
                72132f04-5c27-41af-92cc-01f4af1c03df
                © 2018

                Free to read

                http://www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/doc/non-commercial-government-licence/non-commercial-government-licence.htm

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