ArticleCanadian family physician Medecin de famille canadien2008
Effects of various methodologic strategies: survey response rates among Canadian physicians and physicians-in-training.
Article in Canadian family physician Medecin de famille canadien, 2008. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 117 papers, 2 of them syntheses that pooled it.
What it found
Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.
The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.
Who cites it
117 citing papers in PubMed, 2 syntheses or guidelines pooled it.
- Does advance contact with research participants increase response to questionnaires: an updated systematic review and meta-analysis.BMC medical research methodology · 2021Pooled it
- Increasing response rates from physicians in oncology research: a structured literature review and data from a recent physician survey.British journal of cancer · 2012Pooled it
- Combining Internet-Based and Postal Survey Methods in a Survey among Gynecologists: Results of a Randomized Trial.Health services research · 2018Trial
- A randomised trial and economic evaluation of the effect of response mode on response rate, response bias, and item non-response in a survey of doctors.BMC medical research methodology · 2011Trial
- Retention of fellows to the faculty at a research-intensive academic medical center: a mixed-methods study.Medical education online · 2026Article
- Building a data-driven evaluation framework of physician wellness initiatives: a rapid review.BMJ open · 2026Review
- Medical Student Experiences With ChatGPT: National Cross-Sectional Study.JMIR formative research · 2026Article
- The influence of social capital and evidence-based orientation on psychiatrists' attitudes toward antipsychotic polypharmacy in schizophrenia.Scientific reports · 2025Article
- Obstacles to effective implementation of interprofessional education in Sudan.BMC medical education · 2025Article
- Participation Rates in 11 National Dental Practice-Based Research Network Surveys 2014-2022.Evaluation & the health professions · 2025Article
- Teaching compassion through a community-led, experiential learning activity for undergraduate medical students: the Empathy Project.Canadian medical education journal · 2025Article
- Assessing Attitudes and Perceptions of Unconscious Bias Experienced by Surgical Oncology Fellows.Annals of surgical oncology · 2025Article
- Evaluating the Knowledge and Practices of General Practitioners in Cardiovascular Risk Assessment at Three Referral Hospitals in Bujumbura, Burundi.The East African health research journal · 2025Article
- Characterizing the services provided by family physicians in Ontario, Canada: A retrospective study using administrative billing data.PloS one · 2025Article
- Assessing the professional social capital of psychiatrists: development of the Resource Generator for Psychiatrists (RG-Psy).Archives of public health = Archives belges de sante publique · 2024Article
- Ultrasound education, competencies and expected future use among medical interns in Denmark: a national cross-sectional study.BMC medical education · 2024Article
- Nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs for analgesia in intensive care units: a survey of Canadian critical care physicians.Canadian journal of anaesthesia = Journal canadien d'anesthesie · 2024Article
- Environmental management of asthma in clinical practice: Results from the 2012 National Ambulatory Medical Care Survey.The journal of allergy and clinical immunology. Global · 2024Article
- Review
- Multiple recommended health behaviors among medical students in Western Canada: a descriptive study of self-reported knowledge, adherence, barriers, and time use.Frontiers in medicine · 2024Article
57 more citing papers are in PubMed but not listed here.
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
2 authors.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
objectiveTo increase the overall 2007 response rate of the National Physician Survey (NPS) from the survey's 2004 rate of response with the implementation of various methodologic strategies.
designPhysicians were stratified to receive either a long version (12 pages) or a short version (6 pages) of the survey (38% and 62%, respectively). Mixed modes of contact were used-58% were contacted by e-mail and 42% by regular mail-with multiple modes of contact attempted for nonrespondents. The self-administered, confidential surveys were distributed in either English or French. Medical residents and students received e-mail surveys only and were offered a substantial monetary lottery incentive for completing their surveys. A professional communications firm assisted in marketing the survey and delivered advance notification of its impending distribution.
settingCanada.
participantsA total of 62 441 practising physicians, 2627 second-year medical residents, and 9162 medical students in Canada.
resultsOf the practising physicians group, 60 811 participants were eligible and 19 239 replied, for an overall 2007 study response rate of 31.64% (compared with 35.85% in 2004). No difference in rate of response was found between the longer and shorter versions of the survey. If contacted by regular mail, the response rate was 34.1%; the e-mail group had a response rate of 29.9%. Medical student and resident response rates were 30.8% and 27.9%, respectively (compared with 31.2% and 35.6% in 2004).
conclusionDespite shortening the questionnaires, contacting more physicians by e-mail, and enhancing marketing and follow-up, the 2007 NPS response rate for practising physicians did not surpass the 2004 NPS response rate. Offering a monetary lottery incentive to medical residents and students was also unsuccessful in increasing their response rates. The role of surveys in gathering information from physicians and physicians-in-training remains problematic. Researchers need to investigate alternative strategies for achieving higher rates of response.
Indexed as
Identifiers
18854472PMC2567275What OpenQuestion holds
Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.