OBJECTIVE: To evaluate a community-based educational intervention designed to improve the diagnosis and treatment of arthritis in primary care. METHODS: The educational intervention, entitled "Getting a Grip on Arthritis", consisted of a 2-day workshop and followup reinforcement activities for healthcare providers (providers) and was supported by a toolkit of written materials for providers and clients. The content of the intervention was designed around 10 arthritis best practices derived from published arthritis guidelines. Five community health centers (CHC) participated as intervention sites and 2 as control sites. Intervention impact was determined through a mailed survey to clients with arthritis. Primary outcome analysis compared responses to questions about arthritis best practices between intervention and control sites at baseline and followup. RESULTS: The workshop was attended by 21 multidisciplinary providers from intervention CHC. At baseline, 423 of 624 eligible and consenting clients completed the survey and 376 of 593 completed the followup survey. At followup clients in the intervention group reported significantly higher referrals to The Arthritis Society therapy program, and were more often provided information on type of arthritis, medications and their side effects, disease management strategies, and arthritis community resources. CONCLUSION: This demonstration project is one of the first to show changes in the management of arthritis in a primary care setting. This project has recently received funding from Health Canada's Primary Health Care Transition Fund for implementation across Canada and is expected to provide a template for use in other chronic diseases.
OBJECTIVE: To evaluate a community-based educational intervention designed to improve the diagnosis and treatment of arthritis in primary care. METHODS: The educational intervention, entitled "Getting a Grip on Arthritis", consisted of a 2-day workshop and followup reinforcement activities for healthcare providers (providers) and was supported by a toolkit of written materials for providers and clients. The content of the intervention was designed around 10 arthritis best practices derived from published arthritis guidelines. Five community health centers (CHC) participated as intervention sites and 2 as control sites. Intervention impact was determined through a mailed survey to clients with arthritis. Primary outcome analysis compared responses to questions about arthritis best practices between intervention and control sites at baseline and followup. RESULTS: The workshop was attended by 21 multidisciplinary providers from intervention CHC. At baseline, 423 of 624 eligible and consenting clients completed the survey and 376 of 593 completed the followup survey. At followup clients in the intervention group reported significantly higher referrals to The Arthritis Society therapy program, and were more often provided information on type of arthritis, medications and their side effects, disease management strategies, and arthritis community resources. CONCLUSION: This demonstration project is one of the first to show changes in the management of arthritis in a primary care setting. This project has recently received funding from Health Canada's Primary Health Care Transition Fund for implementation across Canada and is expected to provide a template for use in other chronic diseases.
Authors: Norma J Macintyre; Sydney C Lineker; Christina Hallett; Jake Tumber; Nalin Fernando; Magdalena Hul Journal: Physiother Can Date: 2012 Impact factor: 1.037
Authors: Mary J Bell; Ruben Tavares; Francis Guillemin; Vivian P Bykerk; Peter Tugwell; George A Wells Journal: BMC Musculoskelet Disord Date: 2010-03-17 Impact factor: 2.362
Authors: Kelli D Allen; Hayden B Bosworth; Dorothea S Brock; Jennifer G Chapman; Ranee Chatterjee; Cynthia J Coffman; Santanu K Datta; Rowena J Dolor; Amy S Jeffreys; Karen A Juntilla; Jennifer Kruszewski; Laurie E Marbrey; Jennifer McDuffie; Eugene Z Oddone; Nina Sperber; Mary P Sochacki; Catherine Stanwyck; Jennifer L Strauss; William S Yancy Journal: BMC Musculoskelet Disord Date: 2012-04-24 Impact factor: 2.362
Authors: Linda C Li; Paul Adam; Anne F Townsend; Dawn Stacey; Diane Lacaille; Susan Cox; Jessie McGowan; Peter Tugwell; Gerri Sinclair; Kendall Ho; Catherine L Backman Journal: BMC Med Inform Decis Mak Date: 2009-08-20 Impact factor: 2.796