Terminology in Continuing Education: A Hybrid Methodology for Improving the Use and Reporting of Interventions in Continuing Education.

Researchers and leaders working in quality improvement and continuing education have a variety of interventions available to change clinician behavior and to improve patient outcomes. Evidence from systematic reviews and meta-analyses of such interventions is often mixed, with methodological weaknesses contributing to challenges in summarizing and interpreting evidence. Confusion and inconsistency surrounding many of the terms contributes to this challenge. This international study was commissioned by the Society for Academic Continuing Medical Education to use expert opinion to improve the consistency of important educational terminology by describing the essential components of a set of educational interventions, such as educational meetings. This article will describe how this project uses the literature and an expert consensus process to improve precision around the conceptualization and implementation of educational interventions. This article will offer an in-depth description of a hybrid methodology that blends the Chaffee framework for concept explication with a modified Delphi technique that constitutes a novel expert consensus process. This article concludes with recommendations for other scholars replicating this process.