Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
Randomized Controlled Trial
. 2011 May 3;76(18):1542-7.
doi: 10.1212/WNL.0b013e3182194bad. Epub 2011 Apr 27.

Group patient visits for Parkinson disease: a randomized feasibility trial

E R Dorsey  1 , L M Deuel, C A Beck, I F Gardiner, N J Scoglio, J C Scott, F J Marshall, K M Biglan
Affiliations
Randomized Controlled Trial

Group patient visits for Parkinson disease: a randomized feasibility trial

E R Dorsey et al. Neurology. .

Abstract

Background: Group patient visits are medical appointments shared among patients with a common medical condition. This care delivery method has demonstrated benefits for individuals with chronic conditions but has not been evaluated for Parkinson disease (PD).

Methods: We conducted a 12-month, randomized trial of group patient visits vs usual (one-on-one) care for patients with PD. Visits were led by one of 3 study physicians, included patients and caregivers, and lasted approximately 90 minutes. Those receiving group visits had 4 sessions over 12 months. The primary outcome measure was feasibility as measured by the ability to recruit participants and by the proportion of participants who completed the study. The primary efficacy outcome was quality of life as measured by the PD Questionnaire-39.

Results: Thirty patients and 27 caregivers enrolled in the study. Thirteen of the 15 patients randomized to group patient visits and 14 of the 15 randomized to usual care completed the study. Quality of life measured 12 months after baseline between the 2 groups was not different (25.9 points for group patient visits vs 26.0 points for usual care; p = 0.99).

Conclusions: Group patient visits may be a feasible means of providing care to individuals with PD and may offer an alternative or complementary method of care delivery for some patients and physicians.

Classification of evidence: This study provides Class II evidence that group patient visits did not improve quality of life for individuals with PD over a 1-year period.

PubMed Disclaimer

Figures

Figure
Figure. Screening and enrollment of study participants
*Includes one participant and one caregiver. **Individual was a participant. †Individual was a caregiver.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

Comment in

References

    1. Trento M, Passera P, Tomalino M, et al. Group visits improve metabolic control in type 2 diabetes: a 2-year follow-up. Diabetes Care 2001;24:995–1000 - PubMed
    1. Wagner EH, Grothaus LC, Sandhu N, et al. Chronic care clinics for diabetes in primary care: a system-wide randomized trial. Diabetes Care 2001;24:695–700 - PubMed
    1. Masley S, Phillips S, Copeland JR. Group office visits change dietary habits of patients with coronary artery disease: The Dietary Intervention and Evaluation Trial (DIET). J Fam Pract 2001;50:235–239 - PubMed
    1. Coleman EA, Grothaus LC, Sandhu N, Wagner EH. Chronic care clinics: a randomized controlled trial of a new model of primary care for frail older adults. J Am Geriatr Soc 1999;47:775–783 - PubMed
    1. Beck A, Scott J, Williams P, et al. A randomized trial of group outpatient visits for chronically ill older HMO members: the cooperative health care clinic. J Am Geriatr Soc 1997;45:543–549 - PubMed

Publication types