Understanding the public’s role in reducing low-value care: a scoping review

Table 3 Characteristics of included citations (n = 218)

Characteristic	N (%)
Year of publication
1980–1999	3 (1.4)
2000–2009	23 (10.5)
2010–2019	192 (88.1)
Continent of origin
North America	146 (66.7)
Europe	41 (18.7)
Australia	20 (9.2)
Asia	8 (3.7)
Africa	1 (0.5)
South America	1 (0.5)
Oceania	1 (0.5)
Type of article
Original Research	138 (63.3)
Observational^a	34 (15.5)
Qualitative	28 (12.8)
Randomized controlled trials	21 (9.6)
Non-randomized experimental	13 (5.9)
Knowledge synthesis	12 (5.5)
Consensus method	11 (5.0)
Mixed methods	8 (3.7)
Community jury	8 (3.7)
Other^b	3 (1.7)
Non-original research	80 (36.5)
Narrative review	34 (15.5)
Editorial/commentary	34 (15.5)
Website items	10 (4.5)
Policy report	2 (0.9)
Type of low-value care
Low-value care in general	95 (43.4)
Specific low-value practice(s)	124 (56.6)
Test	38 (17.4)
Treatment	69 (31.5)
Both	16 (7.3)
Clinical setting
Hospital	42 (19.2)
Primary care	35 (16.0)
Emergency Department	22 (10.0)
Community^c	27 (12.4)
Not specified	92 (42.0)
Level of public engagement^d
Patient interaction	156 (71.6)
Research	56 (25.7)
Policy/administration	33 (15.1)

^aIncludes cohort, cross-sectional, and case-control studies
^bIncludes one case report and two public health outreach studies
^cIncludes outpatient clinics, long-term care homes, dentistry, and community pharmacies
^dDescribes where public involvement occurred. Clinical interaction: strategies for public involvement that were employed during a clinical interaction such as a primary care visit; research: involving the public in conducting or evaluating research aiming to reduce low-value care such as patient-reported outcomes; policy/administration: involving the public in policy or administration level initiatives to reduce low-value care, such as prioritizing practices for disinvestment

ISSN: 1748-5908