Evaluation of the Mantram Repetition Program for Health Care Providers
Analysis
Responses to the what was most useful question were downloaded to a spreadsheet file for analyses. Investigators chose summary template analysis, a rapid qualitative analytic technique, as the best strategy for analyzing these textual data. This technique is often used in health services research when it is unrealistic to use more time-consuming qualitative methods, such as coding.29
To begin, the analyst, a PhD-level anthropologist, read through the feedback to identify similar words, phrases, and/or concepts (ie, themes). Once the analyst gained a sense of general themes, she developed category labels using verbatim words and/or phrases in the feedback (similar to developing in vivo codes.30 She listed these categories at the top of a summary template document, providing a definition for each to ensure analytic rigor.
Next, each category was listed down the left side of the template. Participant feedback was copied and pasted from the spreadsheet form into the appropriate category for each of 200 responses. The investigator identified subthemes within each category. After analysis was completed for the first 200 course participants, the analyst grouped similar categories together into broader domains to further organize the data. She then read through the feedback from the remaining 917 course participants to identify negative cases (ie, dissimilarities in feedback). An additional researcher familiar with the condensed MRP training then examined the categories and domains. Together, they discussed and resolved any inconsistencies in interpretation of the data.
To get a better sense of the full range of perspectives about the training, the analyst then read through the written feedback for the what was least useful question. She scanned the feedback for negative cases that contradicted template findings and noted these in a document. A more balanced evaluation of the course emerged through this secondary analysis.
Results
Online surveys were completed by 1,117 participants, of which three-quarters (841) were female. Two hundred eleven (19%) viewed the condensed MRP in real time. The remaining participants viewed an online video of the course. Anonymous course evaluations captured only gender and professional classification of participants. Participants represented a wide range of professional roles. The majority (63%) held clinical positions with direct patient care. The next largest category included administrative or health information personnel (21%). There were also students and trainees among these categories.
Qualitative Findings
Feedback about the course was organized into categories during analysis: (1) instructional format; (2) mode of delivery; (3) course content; (4) professional and personal empowerment; (5) religion and spirituality; and (6) ease of mantram practice. These categories represented 2 broad domains: feedback about the course and feedback about the intervention.
Instructional Format
HCWs often reported that the most useful aspect of the course was the instructional format. Most cited the ease with which they could understand the materials and helpfulness of the examples of mantram practice. The option to download course materials for later reference was also useful. Some HCWs indicated that the course could have been improved by incorporating an experiential component in which participants paused to practice a mantram.
