Adapted nominal group technique effectively builds consensus on health care priorities for older adults, study finds

The participatory research approach is an important tool of family medicine and primary health care research. However, standard consensus methods like the Delphi and nominal group techniques can be time-consuming and may not represent a broad range of opinions.

To address these issues, researchers developed an adapted nominal group technique (aNGT) to efficiently build consensus among stakeholders with diverse perspectives.

The research “Building Timely Consensus Among Diverse Stakeholders: An Adapted Nominal Group Technique” is published in The Annals of Family Medicine.

The study focused on shaping care trajectories for adults aged 65 and older, aiming to prioritize key domains and identify new care indicators.

Researchers used four main strategies:

1. recruiting four diverse stakeholder groups (older adults, clinicians, managers, and decision makers);
2. using remote tools to maximize participation;
3. adding a pre-elicitation activity so participants could individually review study materials and rank domains before group discussions; and
4. tailoring discussions to each group’s needs, including scheduling meetings around lunch for clinicians and avoiding jargon.

Of 28 participants who completed the questionnaire, 20 joined a group discussion. Through the pre-elicitation activity and one round of discussions, participants reached a consensus on prioritizing “symptoms, functioning, and quality of care.” Tailored discussions and remote tools were the most effective strategies.

According to the researchers, by addressing traditional consensus-building challenges, the aNGT fosters inclusivity, efficiency, and relevance, making it a valuable approach for research that informs care standards.