Using a multimethod approach to develop implementation strategies for a cervical self-sampling program in Kenya.

Background: Numerous health policy makers/researchers are concerned about the limitations of research being applied to support informed decision/policy making and the implementation of practical solutions. The aim of the Chaguo Letu project (which means our choice in Swahili) was to determine how local decision makers could apply a multimethod approach to make strategic decisions to effectively implement a Cervical Self-Sampling Program in Kenya.

Methods: A multimethod approach, involving participatory action research, scenario based planning, and phenomenology, was applied in conjunction with two tools to identify relevant factors (negative or positive) that could impact Cervical Self-Sampling Program implementation.

Understanding Barriers for Communicating Injury Prevention Messages and Strategies Moving Forward: Perspectives from Community Stakeholders.

Objectives: The primary objective of this study was to elicit the perspectives of direct care providers on barriers and facilitators to communicating injury prevention messages to parents/caregivers of children under 4 years of age. The secondary objective was to examine characteristics of an injury prevention messaging strategy preferred by direct care providers.

Design And Sample: This qualitative study was conducted across four regions in Ontario Canada.

A qualitative study evaluating causality attribution for serious adverse events during early phase oncology clinical trials.

Background: In early phase oncology trials, novel targeted therapies are increasingly being tested in combination with traditional agents creating greater potential for enhanced and new toxicities. When a patient experiences a serious adverse event (SAE), investigators must determine whether the event is attributable to the investigational drug or not. This study seeks to understand the clinical reasoning, tools used and challenges faced by the researchers who assign causality to SAE's.

GPs' approach to insulin prescribing in older patients: a qualitative study.

Background: Evidence suggests that insulin is under-prescribed in older people. Some reasons for this include physician's concerns about potential side-effects or patients' resistance to insulin. In general, however, little is known about how GPs make decisions related to insulin prescribing in older people.

The role of evidence in the decline of antibiotic use for common respiratory infections in primary care.

Antibiotic prescribing in primary care for common respiratory infections increased steadily until the mid 1990s, when the trend reversed noticeably. During the subsequent decade, antibiotic prescribing reduced by up to one-third in some countries. Explanations for this reduction have focused on a decline in the incidence and severity of common respiratory infections, and on the resulting decrease in the number of patients seeking consultation.

A hybrid qualitative method for pretesting questionnaires: the example of a questionnaire to caregivers of Alzheimer disease patients.

A hybrid method based on cognitive interviewing and consensus panels was developed to pretest a questionnaire for caregivers of persons with Alzheimer disease (AD). The objective of the questionnaire was to elicit caregivers' attitudes and opinions on the use of medications to treat the disease. Thirty-one caregivers were divided into five pretest groups, within which each participant was asked to comment on questionnaire wording and design.