Introduction: Illness script theory offers explanations for expert-novice differences in clinical reasoning. However, it has mainly focused on diagnostic (Dx) performance, while patient management (Mx) has been largely ignored. The aim of the present study was to show the role of Mx knowledge in illness script development and how it relates to…

This commentary reflects the author's impressions of Continuing Medical Education (CME) Congress 2012, a provocative international conference on professional development and quality improvement in the health professions that took place in Toronto, Ontario, last spring. The sessions he attended and conversations he had with other attendees were…

Introduction: High-quality instruments are required to assess and provide feedback to practicing physicians. Multisource feedback (MSF) uses questionnaires from colleagues, coworkers, and patients to provide data. It enables feedback in areas of increasing interest to the medical profession: communication, collaboration, professionalism, and…

Introduction: Multisource feedback (MSF) ratings provided by patients and colleagues are often poorly correlated with doctors' self-assessments. Doctors' reactions to feedback depend on its agreement with their own perceptions, but factors influencing self-other agreement in doctors' MSF ratings have received little attention. We aimed to identify…

Introduction: To support the adoption of guideline concordant care by primary care practices, the New York Diabetes Coalition (NYDC) promoted use of an electronic diabetes registry and developed an interactive educational module on using the registry and improving patient communication. The NYDC hypothesized that use of a registry with immediate…

Introduction: An educationally influential (EI) physician is one to whom colleagues look for informal clinical advice. The original nomination form created to identify EI physicians among general practitioners was published in 1978. The present research developed an updated and simplified nomination form based on a survey of specialists. Methods:…

Demoralization is a feeling state of dejection, hopelessness, and a sense of personal "incompetence" that may be tied to a loss of or threat to one's own goals or values. It has an existential dimension when beliefs and values about oneself are disconfirmed. Numerous sources describe high rates of dissatisfaction and burnout in…

Based upon a review and analysis of selected literature, the author presents a conceptual model of discrepancy analysis evaluation for planning, implementing, and assessing the impact of continuing medical education (CME). The model is described in terms of its value as a means of diagnosing errors in the development and implementation of CME. The…

Introduction: Minimal attention has been given to the intersection and potential collaboration among the domains of continuing education (CE), knowledge translation (KT), quality improvement (QI), and patient safety (PS), despite their overlapping objectives. A study was undertaken to examine leaders' perspectives of these 4 domains and their…

Introduction: There are published criteria for identifying educational influentials (EIs). These criteria are based on studies that have been performed in developed countries. This study was performed to identify criteria and characteristics of EIs in Iran. Methods: The study was conducted on residents, interns, and clerks at a major educational…

Moving knowledge into practice and the implementation of innovations in health care remain significant challenges. Few researchers adequately address the influence of organizations on the implementation of innovations in health care. The aims of this article are to (1) present 2 conceptual frameworks for understanding the organizational factors…

Missed, delayed, or wrong diagnoses can have a severe impact on patients, providers, and the entire health care system. One mechanism implicated in such diagnostic errors is the deterioration of cognitive diagnostic skills that are used rarely or not at all over a prolonged period of time. Existing evidence regarding maintenance of effective…

Introduction: Self-audit involves self-collection of personal performance data, reflection on gaps between performance and standards, and development and implementation of learning or quality improvement plans by individual care providers. It appears to stimulate learning and quality improvement, but few physicians engage in self-audit. The…

Research findings will not change health outcomes unless health care organizations, systems, and professionals adopt them in practice. Knowledge translation research is the scientific study of the methods to promote the uptake of research findings by patients, health care providers, managers, and policy makers. Many forms of enquiry addressing…

Continuing professional development (CPD) is an important vehicle for knowledge translation (KT); however, selecting CPD strategies that will impact health professionals' behavior and improve patient outcomes is complex. In response, we, KT researchers and CPD knowledge users, have recently formed a partnership known as the National Network for…