Table 1. . Hypothetical study descriptions .
| Type | Practice setting | Description |
|---|---|---|
| CER (n = 14) | Outpatient (n = 9) | Individual patients are randomly assigned to receive one of two drugs commonly used to treat a urinary tract infection. The drugs being compared were described as safe and effective, US FDA-approved and routinely used. The hypothetical study sought to determine which drug was more effective at treating the condition |
| |
Hospitalist (n = 5) |
Individual patients are randomly assigned to receive one of two drugs commonly used to treat deep vein thrombosis. The drugs being compared were described as safe and effective, FDA-approved and routinely used. The hypothetical study sought to determine which drug was more effective at treating the condition |
| Medical center operations (n = 13) | Outpatient (n = 8) | Entire clinics are randomly assigned to use either a hand sanitizing gel with a moisturizing component or a sanitizing gel without a moisturizing component. In the hypothetical study, both gels are commonly used by institutions around the country and are being compared with determine if one is associated with lower infection rates |
| |
Hospitalist (n = 5) |
Entire hospitals are randomly assigned to use either a hand sanitizing gel with a moisturizing component or a sanitizing gel without a moisturizing component. In the hypothetical study, both gels are commonly used by institutions around the country and are being compared with determine if one is associated with lower infection rates |
| Physician education/support (n = 13) | Outpatient (n = 9) Hospitalist (n = 4) |
Individual physicians are randomly assigned to receive or not receive a computerized pop-up alert designed to notify physicians of adverse drug interactions. The study compared the rate of adverse drug interactions between physicians in the two study arms† |
†In initial interviews, many participants familiar with pop-up alerts voiced ethical objections to a study in which some physicians did not receive an alert. After nine interviews the scenario was revised to individually randomize physicians to receive a simple pop-up or a pop-up requiring documentation of the possible interaction in patients’ medical records.
CER: Comparative effectiveness research.