Impact of Educational Activity Formats, Online or In-person, on the Intention of Medical Specialists to Adopt a Clinical Behavior: A Comparative Study

Journal of CME (06/12/24) Ayivi-Vinz, Gloria; Tremblay, Martin; Gadio, Souleymane; et al.

Providing continuing professional development (CPD) classes in-person or online did not result in significant differences in intention for medical specialists, new research shows. The comparative before-and-after study evaluated a group of medical specialists that attended in-person classes on nine clinical topics and a second group that attended an adapted virtual version of the classes. The participants' behavioral intention and its psychosocial determinants were assessed before and after the classes. In all, 82 of 206 in-person registrants and 318 of 506 online registrants participated. Comparing the mean intention gain for both in-person and online classes before and after completion identified increases for both formats, but the difference was not statistically significant. Furthermore, there was no significant association with behavior reported six months later and post-course intention in either course format. However, there was a greater likelihood of adoption in both groups among participants with a substantial increase in intention.

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