Do consensus conferences influence their participants?
OBJECTIVE
To determine whether participation in a consensus conference on the assessment of dementia would influence conference participants with respect to their recommendations to primary care physicians for the assessment of dementia.


METHODS
Questionnaire before and after the conference.


METHODS
Canadian Consensus Conference on the Assessment of Dementia, held in Montreal, Oct. 5 and 6, 1989.


METHODS
All 38 experts representing relevant health disciplines who participated in the consensus conference; 36 completed both questionnaires.


METHODS
Participants' opinion before and after the conference as to how frequently each of 28 manoeuvres (12 blood tests, 4 neurologic imaging procedures, 4 types of consultation and 8 "other" tests) should be ordered by primary care physicians as part of an assessment of a patient with dementia suspected in clinical grounds.


RESULTS
For 18 (64%) of the 28 manoeuvres (10 of the 12 blood tests, 3 of the 4 neurologic imaging procedures and 5 of the 8 "other" tests), there was a shift in opinion after the conference toward recommending that primary care physicians order them less often; for 10 of these 18 (5 blood tests and 5 "other" tests) the shift was statistically significant. For the remaining 10 manoeuvres (36%) the shift in opinion was toward a recommendation that primary care physicians order them more often; the shift was not statistically significant for any of these 10 manoeuvres.


CONCLUSIONS
Expert members of a consensus conference are influenced by the process of having participated in such a conference and are capable and willing to chance their initial recommendations when confronted with relevant data.
Clarfield
A M
AM
Herzog Memorial Hospital, Jerusalem, Israel.
Kogan
S
S
Bergman
H
H
Shapiro
D E
DE
Beaudet
M P
MP
D019411:Clinical Laboratory Techniques / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D003245:Consensus Statements as Topic; D003704:Dementia / Q000175:diagnosis*; D005194:Family Practice; D006801:Humans; D010818:Practice Patterns, Physicians'; D012017:Referral and Consultation; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires