Effects of an academic detailing service on benzodiazepine prescribing patterns in primary care.

ABSTRACT:

Background

Benzodiazepines are commonly used to treat anxiety and/or insomnia but are associated with substantial safety risks. Changes to prescribing patterns in primary care may be facilitated through tailored quality improvement strategies. Academic detailing (AD) may be an effective method of promoting safe benzodiazepine prescribing. The objective of this study was to evaluate the effectiveness of AD on benzodiazepine prescribing among family physicians.

Methods and findings

We used an interrupted time series matched cohort design using population-based administrative claims databases. Participants were family physicians practicing in Ontario, Canada. The intervention was a voluntary AD service which involves brief service-oriented educational outreach visits by a train

SUBMITTER: Lacroix M 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC10374092 | biostudies-literature | 2023

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature