35 - Beyond the Numbers: Elevating Clinician Education by Targeting the Right Learners

In the ever-evolving landscape of clinician education, survey outcomes serve as a powerful tool to measure engagement, reinforce best practices, and integrate new research into clinical decision-making. Educational programs are meticulously crafted to highlight emerging clinical trials and bridge the gap between research and practice. Yet when attracting potential learners to this education, the prevailing emphasis on high participant numbers often overshadows ensuring that the right learners are reached. This is commonly seen in the target audience contained in the front-matter of many educational activities (ie, “and other healthcare providers that may have a role in patient management”). Little has been discussed about the influence of the recruitment approach on effectively understanding outcomes. Are large knowledge and competence gains often seen in an outcomes report meaningful, or just an illusion created by the responses of unrelated clinicians who have had little-to-no previous exposure to the therapeutic area?

This poster will use a case example to explore why a strategic focus on the right clinicians is likely to lead to greater educational impact and improved patient outcomes, even though the overall numbers may appear smaller. Results from a large outcomes data set will be used to compare overall outcomes to those targeted just to the specialists most likely to directly interact with patients with a particular disease.

By shifting the message from sheer quantity to meaningful engagement with the right audiences, we can create more effective learning experiences and outcomes measurement that drive actual change in clinical practice. Ultimately, all educators want to see that their work is being utilized to improve patient care. But if too much emphasis is placed on increasing participation, no matter who that audience is, real outcomes may be diluted and key insights could be missed.