Objective
The objective of this study was to compare response rates, respondents' characteristics, and substantive results for CAHPS surveys administered using web and mail protocols.
Data Sources
Patients who had one or more primary care visits in the preceding 6 months.
Study Design/Data Collection Methods
Patients for whom primary care practices had email addresses were randomized to one of four survey administration protocols: web via a portal invitation; web via an email invitation; combination of web and mail; and mail only. Another sample of patients without known email addresses was surveyed by mail. Samples of nonrespondents to the Internet and mail protocols were surveyed by telephone.
Principal Findings
Response rates to surveys administered using the Internet protocols were lower than for the surveys administered by mail (20 percent vs over 40 percent). However, characteristics of respondents and survey answers were very similar across protocols. Respondents without email addresses were older, less educated, and more likely to be male than those with email addresses, and there were a few differences in their responses. There was little evidence of nonresponse bias in either the mail or web protocols.
Conclusion
In this well‐educated patient population, web protocols had lower response rates, but substantive results very similar to those from mail protocols.
One method of reducing predicted shortages because of the aging nursing workforce is to increase retention. Few studies have examined the unique needs of midcareer nurses. A mixed-method approach including surveys and focus groups was used to identify key retention strategies and desires for midcareer nurses. Salary, benefits, positive working relationships, flexible scheduling, and the opportunity for continued education were identified as key retention strategies from this study. Registered nurses in this study reported higher perceptions of their work and work environment than licensed practical nurses did. Differences in work outcomes were evident across sectors, with community nurses reporting higher levels of job satisfaction and perceptions of work quality than nurses in acute and long-term care. Findings suggest that recruitment opportunities may exist with midcareer nurses seeking employment to return to work after time off to have a family. Proactive retention policies that focus on the needs of midcareer nurses would demonstrate a commitment and interest in keeping them in their work positions and in the profession.
scite is a Brooklyn-based organization that helps researchers better discover and understand research articles through Smart Citations–citations that display the context of the citation and describe whether the article provides supporting or contrasting evidence. scite is used by students and researchers from around the world and is funded in part by the National Science Foundation and the National Institute on Drug Abuse of the National Institutes of Health.