Summaries of Independent Scientist (K) Awards

Kerfoot, B. Price

Institution: Harvard Medical School
Grant Title: Spaced Education to Optimize Prostate Cancer Screening
Grant Number:  K08 HS017147
Duration: 3 years (2007-2010)
Total Award: $385,500

Project Description: This project will utilize a prostate-specific antigen (PSA) screening for prostate cancer as an experimental system to assess the efficacy of an online spaced education program which may increase the acquisition and retention of clinical knowledge.  This would optimize primary care providers' long term clinical practice guidelines (CPGs) and reduce the age-inappropriate prostate cancer screening of male patients.

Career Goals: Dr. Kerfoot is an Assistant Professor of Surgery in the School of Medicine in the Veterans Administration (VA) Boston Healthcare System and a Senior Consultant at Harvard Medical International.  He received his M.D. from Harvard Medical School where he also served in residency in urology.  His long-term career goal is to develop, implement, and rigorously evaluate online educational interventions which facilitate the translation of clinical guidelines into evidence-based clinical practice which improve the quality of healthcare delivery.

Progress to Date: A set of 20 provisional test items based on PSA screening CPGs was developed with an emphasis on evaluating when PSA screening should not be performed.  Each test item was content validated and revised to improve clarity and clinical validity and then pilot-tested to determine the test items' psychometric properties.  Based on the pilot test results, a 14-itme test was constructed.  For Aim #2, 36 clinical scenarios were developed based on the PSA screening CPGs to exemplify the circumstances under which PSA screening should not be performed.  For Aims #3 and 4, the intervention phase is now complete and data analysis is underway.

Future Plans: Data analysis for Aims #3 and 4 will continue and when results are available, manuscript preparation will begin.  Dr. Kerfoot will also begin developing grant applications for future funding.

Highlights and Specific Accomplishments:

• Co-Chairperson, Working Group for National Urology Curriculum for Medical Students, 2005-2006.
• AUAF/Astellas Rising Star in Urology Research Award, American Urological Association Foundation.
• William Campbell Felch/Wyeth Research in Education Award, Alliance for CME, 2006.

K-Generated Publications: None thus far.

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