A Community-Based Trial of an Online Intimate Partner Violence CME Program

<bold>Background: </bold>There is a broad need to improve physician continuing medical education (CME) in the management of intimate partner violence (IPV). However, there are only a few examples of successful IPV CME programs, and none of these are suitable for widespread distribution.<bold>Design: </bold>Randomized controlled trial beginning in September 2003 and ending in November 2004. Data were analyzed in 2005.<bold>Setting/participants: </bold>Fifty-two primary care physicians in small (fewer than eight physicians), community-based medical offices in Arizona and Missouri.<bold>Intervention: </bold>Twenty-three physicians completed a minimum of 4 hours of an asynchronous, multi-media, interactive, case-based, online CME program that provided them flexibility in constructing their educational experience ("constructivism"). Control physicians received no CME.<bold>Main Outcome Measures: </bold>Scores on a standardized self-reported survey, composed of ten scales of IPV knowledge, attitudes, beliefs, and self-reported behaviors (KABB) administered before randomization and repeated at 6 and 12 months following the CME program.<bold>Results: </bold>Use of the online CME program was associated with a significant improvement in eight of ten KABB outcomes, including physician self-efficacy and reported IPV management practices, over the study period. These measures did not improve in the control group.<bold>Conclusions: </bold>The Internet-based CME program was clearly effective in improving long-term individual educational outcomes, including self-reported IPV practices. This type of CME may be an effective and less costly alternative to live IPV training sessions and workshops. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]