Survey response in colorectal surgery:A systematic review

Background: Survey research is widely used for developing value-based management strategies in colorectal surgery. However, declining response rates threaten the validity of results. Our aim is to identify factors that influence response rate in colorectal surgical surveys and provide recommendations for future survey design.Methods: We performed a (MEDLINE) search between 2007 and 2020 for survey studies in colorectal surgery providing response rates.Results: Our search revealed 5693 studies, of which 128 studies were included. Patients with colorectal cancer have a lower mean response rate than patients with benign pathology (62.8% vs 75.5%, p &lt; 0.001). Response rate depends on the mode of survey; conducted in person (76%), postal (68%), email (61%) and web-based (44%). Patients participate more often than doctors (P &lt; 0.001). Reminders can positively influence response rates in postal patient surveys (p = 0.03). The proportion of web-based doctor surveys has grown over time (p &lt; 0.01) and overall survey response is declining over time (p = &lt; 0.01).Conclusion: In-person surveying should be explored first in colorectal surgery, especially when addressing colorectal cancer patients and doctors. Reminders are useful to boost response rate in postal surveys directed at patients. Web-based doctor surveys generate the lowest response rate. As response rate is declining, it is important to address these factors when designing and reviewing colorectal surgical survey studies.</p

Surveys in Surgical Education:A Systematic Review and Reporting Guideline

Objectives: Survey studies are a commonly used method for data collection in surgical education research. Nevertheless, studies investigating survey design and response rates in surgical education research are lacking. The aim of this study was to gain an insight into survey response rates among surgical residents and medical students, and provide an initial reporting guideline for future survey studies in this field.Design: PubMed (MEDLINE) was systematically searched for survey studies in surgical education from January 2007 until February 2020, according to the PRISMA statements checklist. Study selection was conducted by 2 authors, independently. Surveys directed at surgical residents and/or medical students were included if data on response rates was available. Studies reporting solely from nonsurgical fields of medicine, paramedicine, or nursing were excluded. Subgroup analyses were performed, comparing response rates for varying modes of survey, per country, and for the 10 journals with the most identified surveys.Results: From the 5,693 records screened for a larger surgical survey database, a total of 312 surveys were included; 173 studies focused on surgical residents and 139 on medical students. The mean (SD) response rate was 55.7% (24.7%) for surgical residents and 69.0% (20.8%) for medical students. The number of published surveys increased yearly, mostly driven by an increase in surgical resident surveys. Although most surveys were Web-based (n = 166, 53.2%), this survey mode resulted in the lowest response rates (mean 52.6%). The highest response rates, with a mean of 79.8% (13.1%), were seen in in-person surveys (n = 89, 28.5%). Wide variations in response rates were seen between different countries and journals.Conclusions: Web-based surveys are gaining popularity for medical research in general and for surgical education specifically; however, this mode results in lower response rates than those of in-person surveys. The response rate of in-person surveys is especially high when focusing on medical students. To improve reporting of survey studies, we present the first step towards a reporting guideline.</p

Identifying women's preferences for treatment of urinary tract infection:a discrete choice experiment

OBJECTIVE: To identify the preferences of women regarding management of urinary tract infections (UTIs). DESIGN: A discrete choice experiment of the preferences for certain treatment attributes was conducted by survey. Attributes included treatment duration, time to complaint resolution, complication risk, side effect risk and contribution to antimicrobial resistance. SETTING: General population in the Netherlands, recruited via social media. PARTICIPANTS: Women aged 18 years or older. PRIMARY AND SECONDARY OUTCOME MEASURES: The primary outcome was the relative importance of the attributes for treatment choice, using a conditional logit model. The secondary outcome was the heterogeneity in these preferences. RESULTS: The discrete choice experiment was completed by 833 women. Most attributes were important to decisions for UTI treatment. Women were willing to accept management with, for example, a higher chance of complications or longer time to resolution, if it could help avoid antimicrobial resistance. However, there was heterogeneity in the preferences. Women who had one previous UTI had a stronger preference for faster symptom resolution compared with those who had no previous UTI. Younger women also preferred faster symptom resolution. Finally, women with a low or middle education level gave less importance to preventing antimicrobial resistance than women with a high education level. CONCLUSIONS: The current study indicated that a considerable part of women valued alternatives to antimicrobial treatment and were prepared to tolerate management that was less optimal in certain respects to avoid antimicrobial treatment