Providing evidence-based information to patients: Impact on physician prescribing

The Canada Drug Guide Project tested the feasibility of producing evidence-based therapeutic guides in lay language and assessed the acceptability, utility, and impact of these guides on physicians, pharmacists, and patients. Methods: 53 family physicians in Nova Scotia, Ontario, and British Columbia recruited 10 patients to each of the prototypes: sore throat (acute symptomatic), osteoporosis (chronic asymptomatic) and heartburn (chronic symptomatic). All patients participated in a detailed telephone interview within 1-10 days of visiting their physician. Clinical care of 859 guide patients and 412 controls was audited by manual office chart review. Results: Physicians treating heartburn prescribed "non-drug" therapy more frequently to guide users than to controls (OR 0.61. 95% CI 0.38,0.98) and bisphosphonate therapy was prescribed less frequently to osteoporosis guide users than controls (OR 0.34, 95% CI 0.21. 0.34). All other forms of therapy were similar in control and guide users. Conclusions: Providing patients with evidence-based therapeutic guides within their physician's offices will result in small but measurable changes in physician prescribing behavior.