A health care organization is conducting a re-abstraction study and wants to review records from all clinical services. What sampling method should be chosen?

When conducting a re-abstraction study that aims to review records from all clinical services, choosing a random sampling method is highly effective. This approach ensures that every record within the population has an equal chance of being selected, thereby minimizing the risk of bias that could arise if certain types of records are over- or under-represented.

A random sampling method is particularly suitable for this scenario as it helps to ensure that the selected sample is representative of the entire population, allowing the organization to generalize findings from the sample to the broader clinical services offered. This method is crucial when the aim is to assess the accuracy and consistency of data abstraction across different clinical services, as it allows for a comprehensive and unbiased evaluation.

Other sampling methods, like quota, systematic, or stratified, might introduce biases or might not cover the full range of clinical services as effectively as a random approach. For example, quota sampling might focus on specific types of records to fulfill certain criteria, which could compromise the study's comprehensiveness. Systematic sampling might inadvertently miss variations present in the dataset, while stratified sampling might be overly complex and unnecessary if the goal is simply to report findings related to all clinical services without prior stratification.