MANUSCRIPT: The impact on medical practice of commitments to change following CME lectures: A randomized controlled trial

Abstract
Background: Self-reported commitment to change (CTC) could be a potentially valuable method to address the need for continuing medical education (CME) to demonstrate clinical outcomes. Aim: This study determines: (1) are clinicians who make CTCs more likely to report changes in their medical practices and (2) do these changes persist over time? Methods: Intervention participants (N¼80) selected up to three commitments from a predefined list following the lecture, while control participants (N¼64) generated up to three commitments at 7 days post-lecture. At 7 and 30 days post-lecture, participants were queried if any practice change occurred as a result of attending the lecture. Results: About 91% of the intervention group reported practice changes consistent with their commitments at 7 days. Only 32% in the control group reported changes (z¼7.32, p50.001). At 30 days, more participants in the intervention group relative to the control group reported change (58% vs. 22%, z¼3.74, p50.01). Once a participant from either group made a commitment, there were no differences in reported changes (63% vs. 67%, z¼50.00, p¼0.38). Conclusion: Integration of CTC is an effective method of reinforcing learning and measuring outcomes.

 

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