title: Organizational assessment in paediatric primary care: development and initial validation of the primary care organizational questionnaire.
abstract: Primary care in the United States is undergoing many changes. Reliable and valid instruments are needed to assess the effects of these changes. The Primary Care Organizational Questionnaire (PCOQ), a 56-item 5-point Likert scale survey that evaluates interactions among members of the clinic/practice and job-related attributes, was administered to clinicians and staff in 36 primary care practices serving paediatric populations in Connecticut. A priori scales were reliable (Cronbach alpha > or = 0.7). Analysis of variance (ANOVA) showed greater heterogeneity across clinics than within clinics for 13 of 15 a priori scales, which were then included in a principal component factor analysis with varimax rotation. Eigenvalue analysis showed nine significant factors, largely similar to the a priori scales, indicating concurrent construct validity. Further research will ascertain the utility of the PCOQ in predicting the effectiveness of primary care practices in implementing disease management programmes.
authors.affiliation: Department of Epidemiology and Population Health, Albert Einstein College of Medicine, Bronx, NY 10461, USA. chall@aecom.yu.edu
authors.forename: Charles B
authors.initials: CB
authors.lastname: Hall
authors.forename: Howard
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Tennen
authors.forename: Dorothy B
authors.initials: DB
authors.lastname: Wakefield
authors.forename: Kevin
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Brazil
authors.forename: Michelle M
authors.initials: MM
authors.lastname: Cloutier
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D003237:Connecticut; D017598:Efficiency, Organizational; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007400:Interprofessional Relations; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D010372:Pediatrics / Q000458:organization & administration*; D011320:Primary Health Care; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires