Effect of behavioral interventions on inappropriate antibiotic prescribing among primary care practices: a randomized clinical trial.
Meeker D, Linder JA, Fox CR, et al. Effect of Behavioral Interventions on Inappropriate Antibiotic Prescribing Among Primary Care Practices: A Randomized Clinical Trial. JAMA. 2016;315(6):562-70. doi:10.1001/jama.2016.0275.
In this cluster randomized trial among 47 primary care practices, prompting clinicians to enter justifications for prescribing antibiotics in patients with antibiotic-inappropriate diagnoses or providing peer comparisons through emails decreased mean antibiotic prescribing rates compared to controls. Antibiotics are a significant source of medical care overuse and inappropriate prescriptions can lead to avoidable harms.