Attachment D -- Invitation Email for Faculty Interviews

Attachment D: Invitation Email for Faculty Interviews

Introductory Email

Dear [Faculty Member]:

We received your name from [source] identifying you as a current faculty member who could provide us with valuable input for a project being conducted by the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality on how patient centered outcomes research (PCOR) is incorporated into the current curriculum for students in the health professions.

Your participation in this evaluation will help to shape the future education of health professionals. As a faculty representative, your input on how PCOR is currently incorporated into the curriculum, and your suggestions on how it should be integrated, is extremely valuable.

The interview will be conducted by the evaluator of the AHRQ project, James Bell Associates. Interviews will be conducted via telephone and scheduled at your convenience; we anticipate that they will be at most one hour in duration. With your permission, the interview will be audiotaped in order to clarify and validate the notes, as well as to confirm direct quotes that may be useful for illustrating themes and findings in the draft report.

Questions will center on:

• Where does PCOR fit into the current curriculum for each health professions field?

• How are the philosophy and substantive findings of PCOR information disseminated to instructors and students?

• Are there gaps in the current curriculum?

• Do you have any recommendations of strategies to improve student professional development?

• Are you aware of profession-specific, cultural, and systemic barriers to identifying, accessing, and utilizing PCOR in health care?

• What is the appropriate role of faculty in promoting the utilization of PCOR within the health care system?

• What are the specific educational needs of future health care professionals in PCOR?

We will be follow-up this email by phone to schedule an interview at a time that is convenient for you. A more complete overview of the project is attached.

If you have any questions about the interview, please do not hesitate to call (XXX-XXX-XXXX) or email (XXXX@yyyy.com).

Background on the Project

AHRQ is the lead Federal agency charged with improving the quality, safety, effectiveness, and efficiency of health care. AHRQ, an agency within the US Department of Health and Human Services, sponsors and conducts research that provides evidence-based information about health care outcomes, quality, cost, use and access. The research sponsored, conducted, and disseminated by AHRQ provides information that helps people make better decisions about health care. AHRQ places special emphasis on reaching priority populations: women, children, minorities, the elderly and those at the end of life, those living in rural or inner-city areas, and those living with low income, chronic illness, or disabilities.

AHRQ is also committed to supporting initiatives that disseminate and help move research into practice. One of AHRQ’s initiatives is the Effective Health Care Program, which funds and produces comparative effectiveness research (CER). The objective of this initiative is to provide patients, clinicians, purchasers, and policy makers with up-to-date, evidence-based information about treatment options. CER compares drugs, medical devices, tests, surgeries, or ways to deliver health care and is designed to inform health care decisions without providing clinical recommendations. CER is an important component of a more recent movement toward patient-centered outcomes research, which is designed to help people and their caregivers communicate and make informed health care decisions, allowing their voices to be heard in assessing the value of health care options.

AHRQ also recognizes the importance of ensuring that clinicians in training are exposed to PCOR and fully understand its role and value in shared clinical decision-making. This project will provide a unique opportunity for you to influence the educational needs of current and future health professions students.

Thank you for your time and willingness to participate in this important work.

Howard Holland

Director, Office of Communications & Knowledge Transfer

Agency for Healthcare Research & Quality