Kerryn Phelps

Appealing to Altruism is Not Enough: Motivators for Participating in Health Services Research

This pilot study sought to identify motivators and barriers to participating in a longitudinal survey; we interviewed patients and practitioners at a multidisciplinary primary care clinic where the proposed project would be based. While altruism motivates participation in medical research, we found that for many potential participants, the opportunity to benefit directly was the primary, and sometimes the only motive to participate or encourage participation in the research project. Patients often wanted direct feedback from their individual results, and they expected to provide consent before the results were forwarded to other parties such as their practitioners. Similarly, some practitioners were more likely to support the project if participation benefited patients directly. Other factors were also identified that influenced the acceptability and perceived risks and benefits of participating. More work is needed to understand these motivators and how patients might benefit directly from participating in health services research, especially when direct medical benefit is not possible.

Is it time to abandon paper? The use of emails and the Internet for health services research – a cost‐effectiveness and qualitative study

RATIONALE A multidisciplinary primary care clinic in Sydney, Australia, was planning to use electronic questionnaires to measure patient-reported outcomes. METHODS Semi-structured interviews with 20 patients were undertaken to explore, among other things, practical issues regarding different questionnaire formats. The response rates and costs of email versus postal invitations were also evaluated. RESULTS Compared with postal invitations, email invitations offered a cost-effective and practical alternative, with a greater proportion of patients volunteering for an interview. Assuming the interface is well-designed and user-friendly, many patients were happy to use the Internet to answer questionnaires. Most patients thought alternate formats should also be offered. Patients discussed advantages and disadvantages of the Internet format. Although more younger patients and females had given the clinic an email address; both sexes, and young and old patients, expressed strong preferences for either wanting or not wanting to use the Internet. CONCLUSION Researchers should consider using email invitations as a cost-effective first-line strategy to recruit patients to participate in health services research. Internet questionnaires are potentially cheaper than paper questionnaires, and the format is acceptable to many patients. However, for the time being, concurrent alternate formats need to be offered to ensure wider acceptability and to maximize response rates.

Integrative medicine outcomes: What should we measure?

The outcomes of Integrative medicine (IM) that combine biomedicine with traditional, complementary and alternative medicine (TCAM) are broad, reflecting the integration. IM is concerned with acute and chronic diseases, holistic approaches, and health promotion and wellness. Before commencing a research program in a primary care IM clinic, stakeholders were interviewed about IM outcomes. Everyone thought Physical Health and Mental Health were important. Those with a more holistic view of health thought a broader range of topics should be measured. Less important topics were lifestyle; health-related aspects of life satisfaction and quality of life; and healthcare evaluation. However, no one thought these should be excluded. Spirituality was the most contentious. Some commended its inclusion. For others, once religiousness and God were removed, the remaining elements should be relocated to the domains of mental health and life satisfaction. The results highlight the importance of consulting stakeholders before measuring outcomes.

The Challenges of Establishing an Integrative Medicine Primary Care Clinic in Sydney, Australia

BACKGROUND In May 2006, a multidisciplinary community-based integrative medicine (IM) clinic was established in Sydney, Australia. It was designed to offer a wide range of IM services, for primary care and to serve as a referral center. OBJECTIVE The aim of this study was to determine which factors were successful and which ones posed challenges for establishing this kind of clinic. METHOD A study of the first 4 years of this primary care integrative medicine clinic was undertaken, using mixed methods--both qualitative and quantitative. RESULTS Consistent with success factors identified in the literature, the clinic had an open-minded culture, credible supporters, suitable facilities, and clinically competent practitioners. Throughout the 4 years of its existence, the clinic strove to create an economically sustainable environment and to develop the service. As time progressed, it became evident that at least half of the practitioners needed to be biomedical doctors for the practice to remain viable. The challenges encountered were creating an economically sustainable clinic, managing high staff and practitioner turnover, finding the right balance between practitioners and services offered, developing an integrative medicine team, and building research capacity to evaluate the clinic and patient outcomes. CONCLUSIONS Although many integrative medicine clinics fail to survive the first few years, after 4 years, this multidisciplinary primary care clinic had succeeded in establishing a viable health care service offering both integrative medicine and conventional, traditional, complementary, and alternative medicine. Finding the right mix of staff members and following up with evaluations to track progress are important.

The Integrative Medicine Team—Is Biomedical Dominance Inevitable?

INTRODUCTION As traditional, complementary, and alternative medicines (TCAM) continue to find their way into mainstream medical practice, questions arise about the future of integrative medicine (IM). Concern has been voiced that the biomedical profession will dominate IM and many of the core principles and philosophies governing the practice of TCAM will be lost. METHODS Using mixed methods, an IM primary care clinic in Sydney, Australia, was compared to the IM models discussed in the literature. RESULTS Commercial concerns greatly influenced the teams development and the services provided by the practice under study. Questions arose as to whether the clinic was simply incorporating TCAM or truly integrating it. Further analysis of the data revealed evidence of biomedical dominance. CONCLUSIONS Given the current health care system in Australia, it seems likely that the biomedical doctor will continue to occupy a central logistical and leadership role in this clinics IM team.

Is it time to abandon paper? The use of emails and the Internet for health services research - a cost-effectiveness and qualitative study: Using emails and the Internet in research

RATIONALE A multidisciplinary primary care clinic in Sydney, Australia, was planning to use electronic questionnaires to measure patient-reported outcomes. METHODS Semi-structured interviews with 20 patients were undertaken to explore, among other things, practical issues regarding different questionnaire formats. The response rates and costs of email versus postal invitations were also evaluated. RESULTS Compared with postal invitations, email invitations offered a cost-effective and practical alternative, with a greater proportion of patients volunteering for an interview. Assuming the interface is well-designed and user-friendly, many patients were happy to use the Internet to answer questionnaires. Most patients thought alternate formats should also be offered. Patients discussed advantages and disadvantages of the Internet format. Although more younger patients and females had given the clinic an email address; both sexes, and young and old patients, expressed strong preferences for either wanting or not wanting to use the Internet. CONCLUSION Researchers should consider using email invitations as a cost-effective first-line strategy to recruit patients to participate in health services research. Internet questionnaires are potentially cheaper than paper questionnaires, and the format is acceptable to many patients. However, for the time being, concurrent alternate formats need to be offered to ensure wider acceptability and to maximize response rates.