title: A Practical Guide to Using the Positive Deviance Method in Health Services Research.
abstract: To provide practical tips for health services researchers considering the use of positive deviance (PD) methods to help explain variations in quality of care or other meaningful parameters.
  
  
  
  Published literature and personal experience.
  
  
  
  Narrative review.
  
  
  
  This review includes a discussion of possible applications of PD to health services research, some methodological choices applicable to PD, and some brief tips regarding publishing the results and incorporating them into future interventions.
  
  
  
  It is hoped that this article will help health services researchers to use this valuable research method more effectively, especially those who have not done so before.
authors.affiliation: Section of General Internal Medicine, 801 Massachusetts Avenue, 2nd Floor, Boston, MA, 02118.|Center for Healthcare Organization and Implementation Research, Bedford VA Medical Center, Bedford, MA.
authors.forename: Adam J
authors.initials: AJ
authors.lastname: Rose
authors.affiliation: Center for Healthcare Organization and Implementation Research, Bedford VA Medical Center, Bedford, MA.|Department of Health Policy and Management, Boston University School of Public Health, Boston, MA.
authors.forename: Megan B
authors.initials: MB
authors.lastname: McCullough
mesh_terms: D003625:Data Collection; D003695:Delivery of Health Care / Q000458:organization & administration; D006302:Health Services Research; D006801:Humans; D036301:Qualitative Research; D011787:Quality of Health Care; D012107:Research Design
keywords: Positive deviance; implementation science; qualitative research; quality of health care; variations in care