RT Journal Article
SR Electronic
T1 A Virtual Community of Practice to Improve Primary Health Care Professionals’ Attitudes Toward Patient Empowerment (e-MPODERA): A Cluster Randomized Trial
JF The Annals of Family Medicine
JO Ann Fam Med
FD American Academy of Family Physicians
SP 204
OP 210
DO 10.1370/afm.2799
VO 20
IS 3
A1 Carola Orrego
A1 Lilisbeth Perestelo-Pérez
A1 Ana Isabel González-González
A1 Marta Ballester-Santiago
A1 Débora Koatz
A1 Valeria Pacheco-Huergo
A1 Amado Rivero-Santana
A1 Vanesa Ramos-García
A1 Nuria Mora Fernández
A1 Alezandra Torres-Castaño
A1 Carlos Bermejo-Caja
YR 2022
UL http://www.annfammed.org/content/20/3/204.abstract
AB PURPOSE We aimed to evaluate the effectiveness of a virtual community of practice (vCoP) in improving primary health care professionals’ (HCPs’) attitudes toward empowering patients with chronic disease.METHODS We conducted a cluster randomized controlled trial. Practices were units of randomization, and primary HCPs and patients were units of analysis. Sixty-three practices in Madrid, Catalonia, and the Canary Islands were randomly allocated to the intervention or control groups. Randominzation of practices was performed after HCP and patient recruitment. The patients and statistician were anonymized to group allocation; it was not possible to anonymize HCPs. The intervention was a 12-month multicomponent tailored vCoP built on the Web 2.0 concept and focused on skills toward patient empowerment. The primary outcome was Patient-Provider Orientation Scale (PPOS) score at baseline and at 12 months. The secondary outcome was the Patient Activation Measure (PAM) score.RESULTS A total of 321 HCPs and 1,921 patients were assessed. The intervention had a positive effect on PPOS total score (0.14 points higher in the vCoP arm; 95% CI, 0.03-0.25; P = .011) and the PPOS Sharing subscale (0.3 points higher in the vCoP arm; 95% CI, 0.15-0.44; P < .001). No effect was found for the PPOS Caring subscale, and no significant differences were found for PAM scores.CONCLUSIONS A vCoP led to a minor increase in the PPOS Sharing component and the total score but not in the Caring component. However, considerable uncertainty remains, given the observed attrition and other limitations of the study. Further research is needed on the effectiveness of the vCoP model and on how to improve HCP engagement.VISUAL ABSTRACT