Engaging Stakeholders in EPC Work (Text Version)

On September 28, 2010, Melissa McPheeters made this presentation at the 2010 Annual Conference. Select to access the PowerPoint® presentation (248 KB). 

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Slide 1

Engaging Stakeholders in EPC Work

Melissa McPheeters, PhD
Co-Director, Vanderbilt EPC

Slide 2

What are the EPCs?

• 14 Centers funded by AHRQ to conduct systematic evidence reviews.
• At work for more than a decade.
• "Pull" rather than "Push" approach to topic selection.
• Increasingly engaged in activities of topic development and refinement and future research needs.

Slide 3

Three images: 1) An illustration of a man wearing a t-shirt that says "steak holder" while holding two t-bone steaks; 2) An image of a man pounding a stake into the ground with a hammer; and 3) An illustration of individuals holding pieces of a puzzle while sitting around a conference table with an unfinished puzzle in the center.

Slide 4

What is a stakeholder?

• Anyone with a "stake."
• Someone affected in some way by the decisional dilemma surrounding a healthcare question.
• For EPCs:
  • Patients and patient families.
  • Clinicians.
  • Payors.
  • Policymakers.
  • Funders (e.g., NIH).

Slide 5

Why use stakeholders in systematic reviews?

• They are our front line.
• They are the end users of our work.
• They bring a range of perspectives to the table.
• They add legitimacy to the process.
• They provide expertise we may not have.

Slide 6

Contact points

• Topic identification.
• Developing key questions.
• Drawing the analytic framework.
• Setting project scope through selection criteria.
• Assessing completeness of the search.
• Ensuring that the message is clear.
• Identifying research gaps and future research needs.

Slide 7

Identifying stakeholders

• Personal networks.
• "Known" leaders in the field.
• Key organizations.
• Official stakeholder groups (e.g. EHC Stakeholders).
• Literature scan.

Slide 8

Challenges

• Engaging stakeholders in a timely manner.
• Ensuring that stakeholders have an a priori overview of the EPC process.
• Balancing contractual obligations with stakeholder preferences.
• Expecting and managing differences in opinion in a way that keeps the process moving and the team positive.

Slide 9

Managing stakeholder relationships

• Establish ongoing relationships.
• Open-door communication.
• Knowing when to use group work or one-on-one.

Slide 10

Logistics matter.

• Include administrative assistants on all communications.
• Determine preferred communication method for general information and materials.
• Circulate a contact list to the entire group.
• Encourage, from the start, that senior individuals designate an additional individual to participate alongside them.
• Provide action-oriented minutes of all discussions.
• Make individual follow up calls to KIs who are unable to participate in meetings.
• Offer to arrange calls between content leads, directors and others in "off hours" as needed.

Slide 11

Balancing perspective with representation

• Not all stakeholders have an equal and unbiased "stake"—sometimes by design.
• Conflict of interest does happen.
• EPCs try and balance the perspectives present to manage explicit and underlying conflicts.
  • Equal and opposing viewpoints.
  • Separate interactions as needed.

Slide 12

Challenges ahead for the EPCs

• Clarifying the role of stakeholders.
• Identifying the optimal number of stakeholders.
• Getting balance in stakeholder types.
• Reaching the right individual at a target group or agency quickly.
• Obtaining and using input from patients and their families either directly or via advocacy groups.