Perceived learning needs of family physicians in british columbia.

To determine family physicians' preferences for time, location, instructional format, and topics, the Division of Continuing Medical Education at the University of British Columbia conducted a survey, in which 1200 questionnaires were mailed to a stratified, proportional random sample of the 3270 general practitioners in the province, the stratifications being urban or rural and decade of graduation. A return rate of 61% yielded 648 usable questionnaires, which exceeds the sample required for analysis with no stratifications. Most popular days for involvement in continuing medical education were Fridays and Saturdays in the months of February, March, October, and November. Common skin disorders and hypertension headed the list of most relevant topics for the whole group and for the urban stratification. Hypertension was superseded by eye emergencies in the rural stratification.