The Department of Veterans Affairs' NSQIP: the first national, validated, outcome-based, risk-adjusted, and peer-controlled program for the measurement and enhancement of the quality of surgical care. National VA Surgical Quality Improvement Program

Assessing compliance with national quality measures to improve colorectal cancer care at the VA

BACKGROUND

The US Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) Office of Quality and Performance's July 2009 report detailed the quality of VA colorectal cancer (CRC) care on the basis of 10 quality indicators (QIs). Of 21 Veterans Integrated Service Networks (VISNs), the authors' VISN ranked last or near last on more than half of the QIs. The aim of this study was to compare a national-level assessment of performance with an institutional-level clinical review.

METHODS

The authors reabstracted all patients seen at surgical hospitals within their VISN during the time period of the Office of Quality and Performance report and reanalyzed their performance on the 10 QIs. A number of quality improvement efforts were also implemented to further boost performance, including the creation of a computerized patient record system CRC order set and quarterly surveillance meetings.

RESULTS

After reanalysis of the VISN's QI performance for CRC patients during the time period of the OQP report, the VISN performed 18% better than reported and 2% better than the national average. Since that time, a multidisciplinary CRC committee has implemented quality improvement measures that have further improved QI performance.

CONCLUSIONS

There is variability between administrative quality assessments and clinically abstracted data. Care must be taken when analyzing QIs at the national level.

Ethnicity and Race Variations in Receipt of Surgery among Veterans with and without Depression

To examine equity in one aspect of care provision in the Veterans Health Administration, this study analyzed factors associated with receipt of coronary artery bypass graft (CABG), vascular, hip/knee, or digestive system surgeries during FY2006-2009. A random sample of patients (N = 317, 072) included 9% with depression, 17% African-American patients, 5% Hispanics, and 5% women. In the four-year followup, 18,334 patients (6%) experienced surgery: 3,109 hip/knee, 3,755 digestive, 1,899 CABG, and 11,330 vascular operations. Patients with preexisting depression were less likely to have surgery than nondepressed patients (4% versus 6%). In covariate-adjusted analyses, minority patients were slightly less likely to receive vascular operations compared to white patients (Hispanic OR = 0.88, P < .01; African-American OR = 0.93, P < .01) but more likely to undergo digestive system procedures. Some race-/ethnicity-related disparities of care for cardiovascular disease may persist for veterans using the VHA.

Pediatric American College of Surgeons National Surgical Quality Improvement Program: feasibility of a novel, prospective assessment of surgical outcomes

PURPOSE

The American College of Surgeons (ACS) National Surgical Quality Improvement Program (NSQIP) provides validated assessment of surgical outcomes. This study reports initiation of an ACS NSQIP Pediatric at 4 children's hospitals.

METHODS

From October 2008 to June 2009, 121 data variables were prospectively collected for 3315 patients, including 30-day outcomes and tailoring the ACS NSQIP methodology to children's surgical specialties.

RESULTS

Three hundred seven postoperative complications/occurrences were detected in 231 patients representing 7.0% of the study population. Of the patients with complications, 175 (75.7%) had 1, 39 (16.9%) had 2, and 17 (7.4%) had 3 or more complications. There were 13 deaths (0.39%) and 14 intraoperative occurrences (0.42%) detected. The most common complications were infection, 105 (34%) (SSI, 54; sepsis, 31; pneumonia, 13; urinary tract infection, 7); airway/respiratory events, 27 (9%); wound disruption, 18 (6%); neurologic events, 8 (3%) (nerve injury, 4; stroke/vascular event, 2; hemorrhage, 2); deep vein thrombosis, 3 (<1%); renal failure, 3 (<1%); and cardiac events, 3 (<1%). Current sampling captures 17.5% of cases across institutions with unadjusted complication rates ranging from 6.8% to 10.2%. Completeness of data collection for all variables exceeded 95% with 98% interrater reliability and 87% of patients having full 30-day follow-up.

CONCLUSION

These data represent the first multiinstitutional prospective assessment of specialty-specific surgical outcomes in children. The ACS NSQIP Pediatric is poised for institutional expansion and future development of risk-adjusted models.

Implementation of an integrated peri-operative quality management program at the Ottawa Hospital

The 2004 Canadian Adverse Events Study estimated up to 23,750 potentially preventable in-hospital deaths occur annually; 51.4% of adverse events occurred with surgical care delivery. An integrated peri-operative quality management program has been implemented at The Ottawa Hospital using the American College of Surgeons National Surgical Quality Improvement Program (NSQIP). Using root cause analysis within a Plan-Do-Study-Act process improvement cycle, NSQIP will lead to improved peri-operative outcomes at the largest Canadian academic healthcare organization.

Laparoscopic versus open appendectomy: an analysis of outcomes in 17,199 patients using ACS/NSQIP

BACKGROUND

The current study was undertaken to evaluate the outcomes for open and laparoscopic appendectomy using the 2008 American College of Surgeons: National Surgical Quality Improvement Program (ACS/NSQIP) Participant Use File (PUF). We hypothesized that laparoscopic appendectomy would have fewer infectious complications, superior perioperative outcomes, and decreased morbidity and mortality when compared to open appendectomy.

STUDY DESIGN

Using the Current Procedural Technology (CPT) codes for open (44950) and laparoscopic (44970) appendectomy, 17, 199 patients were identified from the ACS/NSQIP PUF file that underwent appendectomy in 2008. Univariate analysis with chi-squared tests for categorical data and t tests or ANOVA tests for continuous data was used. Binary logistic regression models were used to evaluate outcomes for independent association by multivariable analysis.

RESULTS

Of the patients, 3,025 underwent open appendectomy and 14,174 underwent laparoscopic appendectomy. Patients undergoing laparoscopic appendectomy had significantly shorter operative times and hospital length of stay. They also had a significantly lower incidence of superficial and deep surgical site infections, wound disruptions, fewer complications, and lower perioperative mortality when compared to patients undergoing open appendectomy.

CONCLUSIONS

Using the ACS/NSQIP PUF file, we demonstrate that laparoscopic appendectomy has better outcomes than open appendectomy for the treatment of appendicitis. While the operative treatment of appendicitis is surgeon specific, this study lends support to the laparoscopic approach for patients requiring appendectomy.

Can Laparoscopic Ileocolic Resection be Performed with Comparable Safety to Open Surgery for Regional Enteritis: Data from National Surgical Quality Improvement Program

Laparoscopic ileocolic resection is feasible for Crohn's disease but few studies adjust for the various preoperative, intraoperative, and postoperative variables that may confound comparisons with open surgery. The aim of this study is to compare outcomes after laparoscopic (LICR) and open ileocolic resection (OICR) performed for regional enteritis using National Surgical Quality Improvement Program (NSQIP) data. Retrospective evaluation of data prospectively accrued into the NSQIP database for patients undergoing ileocolic resection for Crohn's by LICR and OICR was performed. LICR (n = 104) and OICR (n = 203) groups had similar age ( P = 0.1), body mass index ( P = 0.9), smoking history ( P = 0.6), steroid use ( P = 0.7), diabetes ( P = 0.3), serum albumin ( P = 0.07), and American Society of Anesthesiologists class ( P = 0.13). LICR group had more female patients ( P = 0.005). Complications including surgical site infections ( P = 0.5), wound dehiscence ( P = 1), pneumonia ( P = 0.1), deep vein thrombosis ( P = 0.3), pulmonary embolism ( P = 1), urinary infection ( P = 0.1), and return to the operating room ( P = 0.2) were similar. LICR had shorter length of hospital stay than OICR ( P < 0.001). In current practice, as observed with the NSQIP data, LICR, performed by experienced surgeons, is comparable in safety to OICR and is associated with a shorter hospital stay.

The impact of adjusting for reliability on hospital quality rankings in vascular surgery

BACKGROUND

Hospital quality in vascular surgery is often measured using mortality. We sought to determine whether adjusting mortality for statistical reliability changes hospital quality rankings for vascular surgery.

METHODS

Patients undergoing five common vascular surgery procedures (open and endovascular abdominal aortic aneurysm repair, carotid endarterectomy, lower extremity bypass, and aorto-femoral bypass) in the National Surgical Quality Improvement Project (NSQIP) in 2007 were identified (n = 14,559). For each hospital, we first calculated a ratio of observed to expected mortality (O-E ratio) using standard NSQIP techniques. We then adjusted these estimates for statistical noise using empirical Bayes methods, a technique known as reliability adjustment. We then compared rankings based on the standard O-E ratio to the rankings after reliability adjustment.

RESULTS

A total of 172 hospitals reported an average adjusted mortality rate of 2.4% for the five procedures, varying from 0% to 17%. After adjusting for statistical noise using reliability adjustment, hospital mortality was greatly diminished, varying only from 1.7% to 4.1%. This adjustment for reliability had a dramatic effect on hospital rankings. Overall, 43% of hospitals were reclassified into either a higher or lower quartile of performance using traditional methods of risk-adjustment. Fifty-one percent all hospitals in the "best" quartile of performance according to traditional O-E ratios are not classified in the "best" quartile after adjusting for statistical noise. Twenty-six percent of hospitals in the "worst" quartile were no longer classified as such after adjusting for noise.

CONCLUSIONS

Adjusting mortality for reliability reduces statistical noise and provides more stable estimates of hospital quality. Reliability adjustment should be standard for comparing hospital quality.

Waist circumference predicts increased complications in rectal cancer surgery

BACKGROUND

The impact of obesity on development of postoperative complications after gastrointestinal surgery remains controversial. This may be due to the fact that obesity has been calculated by body mass index, a measure that does not account for fat distribution. We hypothesized that waist circumference, a measure of central obesity, would better predict complications after high-risk gastrointestinal procedures.

METHODS

Retrospective review of an institutional cancer database identified consecutive cases of men undergoing elective rectal resections. Waist circumference was calculated from preoperative imaging.

RESULTS

From 2002 to 2009, 152 patients with mean age 65.2 ± 0.75 years and body mass index 28.0 ± 0.43 kg/m(2) underwent elective resection of rectal adenoma or carcinoma. Increasing body mass index was not significantly associated with risk of postoperative complications including infection, dehiscence, and reoperation. Greater waist circumference independently predicted increased risk of superficial infections (OR 1.98, 95% CI 1.19-3.30, p < 0.008) and a significantly greater risk of having one or more postoperative complications (OR 1.56, 95% CI 1.04-2.34, p < 0.034).

CONCLUSIONS

Waist circumference, a measure of central obesity, is a better predictor of short-term complications than body mass index and can be used to identify patients who may benefit from more aggressive infection control and prevention.

Personalized risk stratification for adverse surgical outcomes: innovation at the boundaries of medicine and computation

Patients undergoing surgery exhibit a highly variable risk of mortality and morbidity, even when undergoing similar procedures. Accurately quantifying this risk is critical for preoperative decision-making to ensure patients recieve treatment that is optimal for their individual profile, and for guiding intraoperative and postoperative care. Despite the considerable attention this issue has received, existing models for surgical risk stratification remain grounded in traditional statistical methods and in problem statements that have not evolved significantly over the years. This article explores recent innovations in machine learning and data mining to advance these efforts. Risk-stratification models based on sophisticated computational techniques hold the promise of a new generation of predictive analytical tools that are highly accurate and widely deployable.

Comparison of outlier identification methods in hospital surgical quality improvement programs

BACKGROUND

Surgeons and hospitals are being increasingly assessed by third parties regarding surgical quality and outcomes, and much of this information is reported publicly. Our objective was to compare various methods used to classify hospitals as outliers in established surgical quality assessment programs by applying each approach to a single data set.

METHODS

Using American College of Surgeons National Surgical Quality Improvement Program data (7/2008-6/2009), hospital risk-adjusted 30-day morbidity and mortality were assessed for general surgery at 231 hospitals (cases = 217,630) and for colorectal surgery at 109 hospitals (cases = 17,251). The number of outliers (poor performers) identified using different methods and criteria were compared.

RESULTS

The overall morbidity was 10.3% for general surgery and 25.3% for colorectal surgery. The mortality was 1.6% for general surgery and 4.0% for colorectal surgery. Programs used different methods (logistic regression, hierarchical modeling, partitioning) and criteria (P < 0.01, P < 0.05, P < 0.10) to identify outliers. Depending on outlier identification methods and criteria employed, when each approach was applied to this single dataset, the number of outliers ranged from 7 to 57 hospitals for general surgery morbidity, 1 to 57 hospitals for general surgery mortality, 4 to 27 hospitals for colorectal morbidity, and 0 to 27 hospitals for colorectal mortality.

CONCLUSIONS

There was considerable variation in the number of outliers identified using different detection approaches. Quality programs seem to be utilizing outlier identification methods contrary to what might be expected, thus they should justify their methodology based on the intent of the program (i.e., quality improvement vs. reimbursement). Surgeons and hospitals should be aware of variability in methods used to assess their performance as these outlier designations will likely have referral and reimbursement consequences.

Two-stage operative cytoreduction and intraperitoneal chemotherapy for diffuse malignant peritoneal mesothelioma: Operative morbidity and mortality in phase I and II trials

AIMS

The standard of care for diffuse malignant peritoneal mesothelioma involves operative cytoreduction and intraperitoneal chemotherapy. Most centers favor aggressive operative cytoreduction, accepting high morbidity and mortality. In our trials, patients underwent less extensive cytoreduction followed by prolonged intraperitoneal chemotherapy. Patients underwent a second cytoreduction with heated intraperitoneal chemotherapy. We hypothesized this would result in lower operative morbidity and mortality with similar survival.

METHODS

Hospital records, discharge summaries, microbiology, radiography, and office records were retrospectively reviewed to supplement a prospective database. 30-day morbidity and mortality were categorized, and classified according to the Clavien methodology.

RESULTS

47 first and 39 second operations were performed with 13% and 26% morbidity, respectively. Mortality was 2%. Infections comprised 59% of the morbidity. Inclusive of both operations, formal peritonectomy was performed in 16% of patients, resection of isolated lesions in less than half, and only 19% had a visceral organs other than the spleen resected. At the completion of the protocol, only 3% of patients had visible intraperitoneal disease. The mean total length of stay for both operations combined was 16 ± 23 days. Overall median survival was 54.9 months, and median survival for the epithelioid subtype was 70.2 months.

CONCLUSIONS

A two-stage cytoreduction with intraperitoneal chemotherapy offers median survival comparable to one-stage protocols, with relatively low morbidity, mortality, visceral resections and length of stay despite two operations. This series supports that our protocol is a feasible and safe approach.

A Prospective Study of the Association between Surgeon Experience and Short-Term Patient Outcomes after Colorectal Surgery

Previous papers studying the effect of surgeon experience on patient outcomes after colorectal surgery are hampered by study design, variable measurements of outcome, and have shown conflicting results. The National Surgical Quality Improvement Program is a validated, risk-adjusted, outcomes-based program used to measure the quality of surgical care. Here, we sought to determine the association between colorectal surgeon experience and short-term patient outcomes using a colorectal surgery-specific National Surgical Quality Improvement Program methodology. We prospectively followed 300 patients operated on by eight colorectal surgeons. The median age was 46 years, male:female ratio was 163:137, and median body mass index was 23. Surgeons were divided into two groups: those with less (Group A) than or greater (Group B) than 5 years experience. Procedures were categorized into 137 (46%) major and 163 (54%) minor cases. Group A surgeons operated on 95 (32%) patients and Group B surgeons operated on 205 (68%) patients. Postoperatively, 101 (31%) patients had complications (Group A = 29; Group B = 72). Four (1%) patients had reoperations (Group A = 0; Group B = 4) and 24 (8%) were readmitted (Group A = 5; Group B = 19) within 30 days of surgery. This prospective study revealed no significant difference in short-term outcomes between colorectal surgeons with less than versus more than 5 years experience.

A current profile and assessment of north american cholecystectomy: results from the american college of surgeons national surgical quality improvement program

BACKGROUND

Cholecystectomy is among the most common surgical procedures performed in the United States. The current state of cholecystectomy outcomes, including variations in hospital performance, is unclear. The objective of this study is to compare the risk factors, indications, and 30-day outcomes, as well as variations in hospital performance associated with laparoscopic (LC) versus open cholecystectomy (OC) at 221 hospitals during a 4-year period.

STUDY DESIGN

Using the American College of Surgeons National Surgical Quality Improvement Program (ACS NSQIP) database (2005-2008), patients were identified who underwent cholecystectomy and related procedures (cholangiogram and/or common bile duct exploration). Four outcomes were studied, ie, 30-day overall morbidity, serious morbidity, surgical site infections, and mortality. Forward stepwise logistic regressions yielded patient-level predicted probabilities, and hospital-level observed-to-expected ratios were determined.

RESULTS

Of 65,511 patients, 58,659 (89.5%) underwent LC; 6,852 (10.5%) underwent OC. OC patients were considerably older with a higher comorbidity burden. LC patients were less likely to experience any morbidity (3.1% versus 17.8%; p < 0.0001), a serious morbidity (1.4% versus 11.1%; p < 0.0001), or a surgical site infection (1.3% versus 8.4%; p < 0.0001), and less likely to die (0.3% versus 2.8%; p < 0.0001). Observed-to-expected ratios for overall morbidity ranged from 0 to 3.55; for serious morbidity, 0 to 3.23; for surgical site infection, 0 to 7.02; for mortality, 0 to 13.05.

CONCLUSIONS

Although overall incidence of adverse events is low after LC, substantial morbidity and mortality are associated with OC. Additionally, controlling for patient- and operation-related factors, considerable variations exist in hospital performance when evaluating 30-day outcomes after cholecystectomy.

Peri-operative blood transfusion and operative time are quality indicators for pancreatoduodenectomy

BACKGROUND

Minimization of blood loss during pancreatoduodenectomy requires careful surgical technique and specific preventative measures. Therefore, red blood cell (RBC) transfusions and operative time are potential surgical quality indicators. The aim of the present study was to compare peri-operative RBC transfusion and operative time with 30-day morbidity/mortality after pancreatoduodenectomy.

METHODS

All pancreatoduodenectomies (2005 to 2008) were identified using the American College of Surgeons-National Surgical Quality Improvement Program (ACS-NSQIP). RBC transfusions and operative time were correlated with 30-day morbidity/mortality.

RESULTS

Pancreatoduodenectomy was completed in 4817 patients. RBC transfusions were given to 1559 (32%) patients (1-35 units). Overall morbidity and mortality rates were 37% and 3.0%, respectively. Overall 30-day morbidity increased in a stepwise manner with the number of RBC transfusions (R = 0.69, P < 0.01). Although RBC transfusions and operative times were not statistically linked (P = 0.87), longer operative times were linearly associated with increased 30-day morbidity (R = 0.79, P < 0.001) and mortality (R = 0.65, P < 0.01). Patients who were not transfused also displayed less morbidity (33%) and mortality (1.9%) (P < 0.05).

DISCUSSION

Peri-operative RBC transfusion after pancreatoduodenectomy is linearly associated with 30-day morbidity. Longer operative time also correlates with increased morbidity and mortality. Therefore, blood transfusions and prolonged operative time should be considered quality indicators for pancreatoduodenectomy.

Pancreatectomy risk calculator: an ACS-NSQIP resource

BACKGROUND

The morbidity of pancreatoduodenectomy remains high and the mortality may be significantly increased in high-risk patients. However, a method to predict post-operative adverse outcomes based on readily available clinical data has not been available. Therefore, the objective was to create a 'Pancreatectomy Risk Calculator' using the American College of Surgeons-National Surgical Quality Improvement Program (ACS-NSQIP) database.

METHODS

The 2005-2008 ACS-NSQIP data on 7571 patients undergoing proximal (n = 4621), distal (n = 2552) or total pancreatectomy (n = 177) as well as enucleation (n = 221) were analysed. Pre-operative variables (n = 31) were assessed for prediction of post-operative mortality, serious morbidity and overall morbidity using a logistic regression model. Statistically significant variables were ranked and weighted to create a common set of predictors for risk models for all three outcomes.

RESULTS

Twenty pre-operative variables were statistically significant predictors of post-operative mortality (2.5%), serious morbidity (21%) or overall morbidity (32%). Ten out of 20 significant pre-operative variables were employed to produce the three mortality and morbidity risk models. The risk factors included age, gender, obesity, sepsis, functional status, American Society of Anesthesiologists (ASA) class, coronary heart disease, dyspnoea, bleeding disorder and extent of surgery.

CONCLUSION

The ACS-NSQIP 'Pancreatectomy Risk Calculator' employs 10 easily assessable clinical parameters to assist patients and surgeons in making an informed decision regarding the risks and benefits of undergoing pancreatic resection. A risk calculator based on this prototype will become available in the future as on online ACS-NSQIP resource.

Evaluating parsimonious risk-adjustment models for comparing hospital outcomes with vascular surgery

BACKGROUND

Most outcomes registries use a large number of variables to control for differences in patients. We sought to determine whether fewer variables could be used for risk adjustment without compromising hospital quality comparisons.

METHODS

We used prospective, clinical data from the American College of Surgeons-National Surgical Quality Improvement Program (ACS-NSQIP) for five commonly performed inpatient vascular procedures (N = 24,744). For each of the five operations, we compared the ability of two parsimonious models (an intermediate model, using the top five variables for each procedure and a limited model using the top 2 variables from each procedure) and the full model (up to 42 variables) to predict the risk of mortality and morbidity at the patient and hospital level.

RESULTS

The parsimonious model was similar to the full model in all comparisons. For the five procedures, the intermediate, limited, and full models all had very similar discrimination at the patient-level (C indices of 0.87 vs 0.85 vs 0.87 for mortality and 0.77 vs 0.75 vs 0.77 for morbidity), and similar calibration, as assessed with the Hosmer-Lemeshow test. In evaluating hospital-level morbidity and mortality rates, the correlations between the parsimonious and full models were very high for both mortality (>0.97 across operations) and morbidity (>0.97 across operations).

CONCLUSIONS

Hospital quality comparisons for vascular surgery can be adequately risk-adjusted using a small number of important variables. Reducing the number of variables collected will significantly decrease the burden of data collection for hospitals choosing to participate in the vascular module of the ACS-NSQIP.

Measuring processes of care in general surgery: assessment of technical and nontechnical skills

Measuring the quality of health care is becoming increasingly important. Quality is often conceptualized as 3 dimensions of care: structures, processes, and outcomes. Unfortunately, there is little consensus about what should be measured--and how it should be measured--when it comes to measuring processes of care related to the conduct of surgical procedures. This article reviews recent advances in surgical quality of care measurement with particular emphasis on processes of care, and evaluates existing measures of technical and nontechnical surgical skills as measures of quality of care in surgery.

Comparison of outcomes after laparoscopic versus open appendectomy for acute appendicitis at 222 ACS NSQIP hospitals

BACKGROUND

The benefit of laparoscopic (LA) versus open (OA) appendectomy, particularly for complicated appendicitis, remains unclear. Our objectives were to assess 30-day outcomes after LA versus OA for acute appendicitis and complicated appendicitis, determine the incidence of specific outcomes after appendectomy, and examine factors influencing the utilization and duration of the operative approach with multi-institutional clinical data.

METHODS

Using the American College of Surgeons National Surgical Quality Improvement Program (ACS NSQIP) database (2005-2008), patients were identified who underwent emergency appendectomy for acute appendicitis at 222 participating hospitals. Regression models, which included propensity score adjustment to minimize the influence of treatment selection bias, were constructed. Models assessed the association between surgical approach (LA vs OA) and risk-adjusted overall morbidity, surgical site infection (SSI), serious morbidity, and serious morbidity/mortality, as well as individual complications in patients with acute appendicitis and complicated appendicitis. The relationships between operative approach, operative duration, and extended duration of stay with hospital academic affiliation were also examined.

RESULTS

Of 32,683 patients, 24,969 (76.4%) underwent LA and 7,714 (23.6%) underwent OA. Patients who underwent OA were significantly older with more comorbidities compared with those who underwent LA. Patients treated with LA were less likely to experience an overall morbidity (4.5% vs 8.8%; odds ratio [OR], 0.60; 95% confidence interval [CI], 0.54-0.68) or a SSI (3.3% vs 6.7%; OR, 0.57; 95% CI, 0.50-0.65) but not a serious morbidity (2.6% vs 4.2%; OR, 0.86; 95% CI, 0.74-1.01) or a serious morbidity/mortality (2.6% vs 4.3%; OR, 0.87; 95% CI, 0.74-1.01) compared with those who underwent OA. All patients treated with LA were significantly less likely to develop individual infectious complications except for organ space SSI. Among patients with complicated appendicitis, organ space SSI was significantly more common after laparoscopic appendectomy (6.3% vs 4.8%; OR, 1.35; 95% CI, 1.05-1.73). For all patients with acute appendicitis, those treated at academic-affiliated versus community hospitals were equally likely to undergo LA versus OA (77.0% vs 77.3%; P = .58). Operative duration at academic centers was significantly longer for both LA and OA (LA, 47 vs 38 minutes [P < .0001]; OA, 49 vs 44 minutes [P < .0001]). Median duration of stay after LA was 1 day at both academic-affiliated and community hospitals.

CONCLUSION

Within ACS NSQIP hospitals, LA is associated with lower overall morbidity in selected patients. However, patients with complicated appendicitis may have a greater risk of organ space SSI after LA. Academic affiliation does not seem to influence the operative approach. However, LA is associated with similar durations of stay but slightly greater operative times than OA at academic versus community hospitals.

Trends in the inpatient quality indicators: the Veterans Health Administration experience

BACKGROUND

The Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality Inpatient Quality Indicators (IQIs), which include in-hospital mortality and utilization rates, have received little attention in the Veterans Health Administration (VA), despite extensive private sector use for quality improvement.

OBJECTIVES

We examined the following: the feasibility of applying the IQIs to VA data; temporal trends in national VA IQI rates; temporal and regional IQI trends in geographic areas defined by Veterans Integrated Service Networks' (VISNs); and VA versus non-VA (Nationwide Inpatient Sample) temporal trends.

METHODS

We derived VA- and VISN-level IQI observed rates, risk-adjusted rates, and observed to expected ratios (O/Es), using VA inpatient data (2004-2007). We examined the trends in VA- and VISN-level rates using weighted linear regression, variation in VISN-level O/Es, and compared VA to non-VA trends.

RESULTS

VA in-hospital mortality rates from selected medical conditions (stroke, hip fracture, pneumonia) decreased significantly over time; procedure-related mortality rates were unchanged. Laparoscopic cholecystectomy rates increased significantly. A few VISNs were consistently high or low outliers for the medical-related mortality IQIs. Within any given year, utilization indicators, especially cardiac catheterization and cholecystectomy, showed the most inter-VISN variation. Compared with the non-VA, VA medical-related mortality rates for the above-mentioned conditions decreased more rapidly, whereas laparascopic cholecystectomy rates rose more steeply.

CONCLUSIONS

The IQIs are easily applied to VA administrative data. They can be useful to tracks rate trends over time, reveal variation between sites, and for trend comparisons with other healthcare systems. By identifying potential quality events related to mortality and utilization, they may complement existing VA quality improvement initiatives.

Do all patients with carcinoma of the esophagus benefit from treatment at teaching facilities?

BACKGROUND

We sought to determine whether patients with esophageal carcinoma benefit from regionalization of care.

METHODS

The Florida Cancer Data System (FCDS) and the Agency for Health Care Administration data sets (1998-2002) were merged and queried.

RESULTS

A total of 5,041 patients (87.6% Caucasian vs. 11.1% African American (AA)) demonstrated a median survival time of 9.8 months overall and 23.4 months following surgical resection (P < 0.001). Adenocarcinoma arose predominantly in Caucasian patients (98.1%). Patients with adenocarcinoma (n = 2,248) derived a treatment benefit at a TF (HR = 1.35, P = 0.003), including an improved 90-day mortality following surgery (2.1% vs. 4.0%, P < 0.001). Squamous cell carcinoma (SCC) arose predominantly in AA patients (91.6%). No overall survival benefit at TF was observed (HR = 1.01, P = 0.915), however a trend for reduced 90-day surgical mortality was observed at TF (1.9% vs. 5.2%, P = 0.062). Multivariate analysis for adenocarcinoma demonstrates that poverty, lack of chemotherapy or surgery, and failure to provide treatment at a TF are independent predictors of worse survival. For SCC patients, AA race was a significant predictor of poorer survival while TF and poverty level were not.

CONCLUSIONS

These data suggest no benefit from potential regionalized care for patients with squamous histology, which disproportionately affects AA.

Effect of postdischarge morbidity and mortality on comparisons of hospital surgical quality

BACKGROUND

Hospitals increasingly rely on surgical quality assessment programs that require considerable resources to capture outcomes after hospital discharge. However, it is unclear whether capturing postdischarge complications and deaths is important. Our objectives were (1) to determine the frequency of postdischarge complications and deaths and (2) to determine whether hospital rankings change with inclusion of postdischarge outcomes.

METHODS

From 181 hospitals participating in the American College of Surgeon's National Surgical Quality Improvement Program, 329,951 patients were identified (2006-2007). Mortality and 19 complications within 30 days of the index operation were categorized as occurring before or after discharge. Risk-adjusted hospital rankings were compared based on whether only predischarge (inpatient) versus both pre- and postdischarge (inpatient and outpatient within 30 days of operation) morbidity and mortality were included.

RESULTS

Postdischarge complications accounted for 32.9% of all complications. Certain complications occurred frequently after discharge: surgical site infections (66.0%), urinary tract infections (39.4%), pulmonary embolisms (42.2%), and deep venous thromboses (34.5%). Of all patients experiencing complications, 39.7% had only postdischarge complications. Of 5827 postoperative deaths, 23.6% occurred after discharge. Hospital quality rankings changed when postdischarge outcomes were excluded versus included for morbidity (median hospital rank change: 16 ranks; interquartile range, 7-36) and mortality (median hospital rank change: 14 ranks; interquartile range, 6-29), and there was disagreement in outlier status designations depending on whether postdischarge events were included (morbidity: kappa = 0.546; mortality: kappa = 0.507).

CONCLUSIONS

A substantial proportion of postoperative complications and deaths occur after hospital discharge. Inclusion of postdischarge events considerably affects hospital quality rankings and outlier status designations. Quality improvement programs and research that do not consider postdischarge outcomes may offer incomplete information to hospitals, payers, providers, and patients.

A multicenter, prospective, advanced diagnostic bronchoscopy outcomes registry

BACKGROUND

Multiple new diagnostic bronchoscopic technologies are available, but little is known about their comparative performance and specific yield when adjusted for location of lesions, target size, and diagnosis. We present a multi-institutional prospective-outcomes database to assess diagnostic yields of advanced bronchoscopic procedures, as well as related morbidity and mortality.

METHODS

Data were extracted and reviewed from an ongoing, paper-based, prospective, multi-institutional outcomes database for advanced diagnostic bronchoscopic procedures. All consecutive eligible patients are entered into this database, and information on demographics, procedure, and lesion characteristics as well as complications were documented. Descriptive statistical analyses were performed.

RESULTS

A total of 310 diagnostic procedures were performed over a 1-year period in four institutions by 15 different clinicians. The majority of the patients were white (66%), male (56%), former smokers (55%), with a mean age of 61 +/- 14 years. The average procedure time was 36 min, and the most common procedure was transbronchial needle aspiration (TBNA) (n = 198). Nodal tissue was obtained in 82.3% from TBNA sampling with a mean of three passes using endobronchial ultrasound guidance with a 22-gauge needle and mostly without on-site cytology. The overall diagnostic yield for all procedures was 75%. There were few complications, and none required a change in disposition.

CONCLUSIONS

Prospective and ongoing data analysis for bronchoscopic procedures is feasible and valuable. Lesion-adjusted diagnostic yields can be documented and potentially used for comparative assessment of different technologies and operators, as well as benchmarking and quality improvement initiatives. Extending the number of participating centers and web-based submission to minimize missing data components are the next, already-initiated steps.

Preliminary NSQIP results: A tool for quality improvement

Objective: To utilize National Surgical Quality Improvement Program (NSQIP) data to evaluate patient outcomes in otolaryngology–head and neck surgery.

Study Design: Retrospective medical chart abstraction of patients undergoing major surgical procedures in the inpatient and outpatient setting.

Setting: Academic/teaching hospitals with more than 500 beds.

Subjects and Methods: The American College of Surgeons NSQIP collects data on 135 variables including preoperative risk factors, intraoperative variables, and 30-day-postoperative mortality and morbidity outcomes for patients undergoing major surgical procedures in the inpatient and outpatient setting. As of August 2008, there are currently 47 hospitals submitting data for otolaryngology–head and neck surgery.

Results: Opportunities for improvement were identified in respiratory, wound, and venothromboembolic (VTE) occurrences. Implementation of a standardized VTE and perioperative protocol resulted in a decreased length of stay and observed-to-expected (O/E) morbidity and mortality for all surgical services.

Conclusion: NSQIP reports form the basis for quality improvement with targeted interventions in areas of concern that result in changes in patient care processes. The reports are composed of outcomes-based, risk-adjusted data that are submitted by participating hospitals and have recently included data for otolaryngology–head and neck surgery. Actions taken based on NSQIP data demonstrate improvements in patient morbidity and mortality, decreased length of stay, and decreased hospital costs. In a time of increased scrutiny of health care costs and outcomes, NSQIP is an important tool for surgeons to improve quality and decrease costs.

The Effect of Diabetes Mellitus on Surgical Site Infections after Colorectal and Noncolorectal General Surgical Operations

Patients undergoing colorectal surgery (CRS) are known to be at increased risk of surgical site infection (SSI). We assessed the effect of diabetes and other risk factors on SSI in patients undergoing CRS and patients undergoing general surgery (GS). American College of Surgeons National Surgical Quality Improvement Program Participant Use Data File from 2005 to 2006 was used. χ2 tests, t tests, and logistic regression were used to assess the risk factors. Of the 129,909 study patients 10.1 per cent were patients undergoing CRS. The incidence of SSI in patients undergoing CRS was 3.8 times higher (95% CI, 3.6–4.1) than in patients undergoing GS. The incidence of SSI was higher in diabetics than nondiabetics in patients undergoing CRS (15.4 vs 11.0%, P < 0.001) and patients undergoing GS (5.3 vs 3.1%, P < 0.001). The significant univariate predictors of SSI for patients undergoing GS and patients undergoing CRS were: males, American Society of Anesthesiologists (ASA) class, diabetes emergency surgery, operation time, and greater than 2 units of intraoperative red blood cell transfusion. For patients undergoing GS, increasing age was also significant. After multivariate adjustment, significant predictors of SSI for patients undergoing GS and patients undergoing CRS were: male gender, diabetes, ASA class, emergency surgery, and operation time. For patients undergoing GS, age also remained significant. Among patients undergoing CRS, insulin-dependent diabetes mellitus (IDDM) and noninsulin-dependent diabetes mellitus (NIDDM) were 1.32 ( P < 0.05) times more likely than nondiabetics to develop SSI. Among patients undergoing GS, only IDDM (OR, 1.39; P < 0.001) were at increased risk. In this large hospital-based study, patients undergoing CRS were three times more likely to get SSI than patients undergoing GS. Diabetic patients with CRS (IDDM and NIDDM) and patients undergoing GS (IDDM) were at increased risk of SSI compared with nondiabetics. More intense glycemic control may reduce SSI in patients undergoing CRS with diabetes.

Laparoscopic approach significantly reduces surgical site infections after colorectal surgery: data from national surgical quality improvement program

BACKGROUND

The goal of this study was to compare surgical site infection (SSI) rates between laparoscopic (LAP) and open colorectal surgery using the National Surgical Quality Improvement Program (NSQIP) database.

STUDY DESIGN

We identified patients included in the NSQIP database from 2006 to 2007 who underwent LAP and open colorectal surgery. SSI rates were compared for the 2 groups. Association between patient demographics, diagnosis, type of procedure, comorbidities, laboratory values, intraoperative factors, and SSI within 30 days of surgery, were determined using a logistic regression analysis.

RESULTS

Among 10,979 patients undergoing colorectal surgery (LAP 31.1%, open 68.9%), the SSI rate was 14.0% (9.5% LAP vs 16.1% open, p < 0.001). LAP patients were younger (p < 0.001), with lower American Society of Anesthesiologists (ASA) scores (p < 0.001) and comorbidities (p = 0.001) involving benign and inflammatory conditions rather than malignancy (p < 0.001), but operative time was greater (p = 0.001). On multivariate analysis age, ASA > or = 3, smoking, diabetes, operative time >180 minutes, appendicitis or diverticulitis, and regional enteritis diseases were found to be significantly associated with high SSI; the LAP approach was associated with a reduced SSI rate.

CONCLUSIONS

The LAP approach is independently associated with a reduced SSI when compared with open surgery and should, when feasible, be considered for colon and rectal conditions.

The effect of preexisting conditions on hospital quality measurement for injured patients

OBJECTIVE

To determine whether adjusting for comorbidities significantly affects hospital quality measurement compared with adjusting for injury severity alone.

BACKGROUND

Pre-existing conditions have a significant impact on mortality after injury. The impact of including comorbidities on hospital quality measurement is not well understood.

METHODS

Retrospective cohort study using the Healthcare Cost and Utilization Project Nationwide Inpatient Sample (2005-2006). The Trauma Mortality Probability Model (TMPM-ICD9) was re-estimated with and without the addition of the comorbidity measures in the Agency for Health Research and Quality comorbidity algorithm. Hospital quality was measured using an adjusted odds ratio (OR) obtained using hierarchical logistic regression modeling. The OR quantifies the likelihood that trauma patients treated at a specific hospital are more or less likely to die compared with patients treated at an average hospital. Hospitals with an adjusted OR significantly greater than, or less than 1 were classified as low-quality or high-quality outliers, respectively. Pairwise comparison of hospital quality based on TMPM-ICD9 with and without comorbidity information were performed using the intraclass correlation coefficient, the Spearman correlation coefficient, the Bland-Altman Plot, and the kappa statistic.

RESULTS

There was nearly perfect agreement between hospital ranking based on TMPM-ICD9 and TMPM-ICD9 with comorbidities. The intraclass correlation coefficient was 0.943 (95% CI, 0.931-0.951), the Spearman correlation coefficient was 0.953 (95% CI, 0.944-0.960), and the kappa statistic was 0.863 (95% CI, 0.792-0.934). The odds of a patient dying in the worst 5% hospitals was 1.73 (95% CI, 1.61-1.86), whereas the odds of a patient dying in the best 5% of the hospitals was 0.37 (95% CI, 0.31-0.44).

CONCLUSION

In this large study of 148,280 trauma patients in 511 hospitals, we found no evidence that adding comorbidites to the risk-adjustment model used to benchmark hospital performance changes hospital ranking. In addition, there appears to be significant variability in mortality outcomes between the best and worst performing hospitals. This difference in outcomes across hospitals may represent a significant opportunity to improve health outcomes for injured patients.

The future of academic surgery

Academic surgery is a microcosm of the greater academic medical enterprise-albeit with some admitted idiosyncrasies. Most of the issues and challenges are common to other areas of academic practice, but the means by which academic surgeons meet these challenges will be different. Along with continuous process improvement, future innovation is imperative in virtually all areas. Some specific solutions to challenges in clinical care that academic surgeons should pursue include promoting both evidenced-based and more uniform, quality surgical clinical care; incorporating more efficiency into the clinical care environment; continuing to develop minimally invasive technology and techniques; and implementing the use of prospective clinical databases in real time. Goals of surgical education should include using simulation technology, standardizing technical evaluation techniques, incorporating more basic science, and focusing more on professionalism. Lastly, the surgical research enterprise needs restructuring (including a new process for making decisions regarding who receives resources), strategies to improve extramural funding, and new approaches for selecting foci for surgical research efforts that build on differentiated strengths related to surgical practice.

Frailty as a predictor of surgical outcomes in older patients

BACKGROUND

Preoperative risk assessment is important yet inexact in older patients because physiologic reserves are difficult to measure. Frailty is thought to estimate physiologic reserves, although its use has not been evaluated in surgical patients. We designed a study to determine if frailty predicts surgical complications and enhances current perioperative risk models.

STUDY DESIGN

We prospectively measured frailty in 594 patients (age 65 years or older) presenting to a university hospital for elective surgery between July 2005 and July 2006. Frailty was classified using a validated scale (0 to 5) that included weakness, weight loss, exhaustion, low physical activity, and slowed walking speed. Patients scoring 4 to 5 were classified as frail, 2 to 3 were intermediately frail, and 0 to 1 were nonfrail. Main outcomes measures were 30-day surgical complications, length of stay, and discharge disposition. Multiple logistic regression (complications and discharge) and negative binomial regression (length of stay) were done to analyze frailty and postoperative outcomes associations.

RESULTS

Preoperative frailty was associated with an increased risk for postoperative complications (intermediately frail: odds ratio [OR] 2.06; 95% CI 1.18-3.60; frail: OR 2.54; 95% CI 1.12-5.77), length of stay (intermediately frail: incidence rate ratio 1.49; 95% CI 1.24-1.80; frail: incidence rate ratio 1.69; 95% CI 1.28-2.23), and discharge to a skilled or assisted-living facility after previously living at home (intermediately frail: OR 3.16; 95% CI 1.0-9.99; frail: OR 20.48; 95% CI 5.54-75.68). Frailty improved predictive power (p < 0.01) of each risk index (ie, American Society of Anesthesiologists, Lee, and Eagle scores).

CONCLUSIONS

Frailty independently predicts postoperative complications, length of stay, and discharge to a skilled or assisted-living facility in older surgical patients and enhances conventional risk models. Assessing frailty using a standardized definition can help patients and physicians make more informed decisions.

Obese patients benefit from minimally invasive colorectal cancer surgery

BACKGROUND

Minimally invasive surgery (MIS) for colorectal cancer offers improved short-term outcomes compared with open surgery. However, there is concern that MIS is more difficult in obese patients and may be associated with worse oncologic outcomes while failing to preserve short-term benefits. We hypothesized that obese patients undergoing surgery for colorectal cancer (CRC) would benefit from MIS.

METHODS

Retrospective database review.

RESULTS

Database review identified 155 obese patients undergoing resections for CRC from 2002-2009. Open cases accounted for 73% (N = 113) and MIS for 27% (N = 42). Conversion from MIS to open surgery occurred in 26% of cases. Obese patients had a nonsignificantly decreased rate of wound infection after MIS (21%) versus open surgery (28%, P < 0.645), while the incidence of other complications did not differ by surgical approach. The MIS cohort demonstrated faster return of bowel function and returned home a median of 2 days faster group than in the open surgery group (P < 0.003). From an oncologic standpoint, MIS was at least equivalent to open surgery as median number of lymph nodes extracted (20 versus 15, P < 0.073) and proportion of margin negative resections (97% versus 98%, P < 0.654) did not significantly differ between the two groups.

CONCLUSIONS

Minimally invasive surgery for CRC is safe and effective in obese patients since bowel function recovers rapidly, and hospital stay is significantly reduced while the quality of oncologic care is maintained.

Risk adjustment for comparing hospital quality with surgery: how many variables are needed?

BACKGROUND

The American College of Surgeons' National Surgical Quality Improvement Program (ACS NSQIP) will soon be reporting procedure-specific outcomes, and hopes to reduce the burden of data collection by collecting fewer variables. We sought to determine whether these changes threaten the robustness of the risk adjustment of hospital quality comparisons.

STUDY DESIGN

We used prospective, clinical data from the ACS NSQIP from 2005 to 2007 (184 hospitals, 74,887 patients). For the 5 general surgery operations in the procedure-specific NSQIP, we compared the ability of the full model (21 variables), an intermediate model (12 variables), and a limited model (5 variables) to predict patient outcomes and to risk-adjust hospital outcomes.

RESULTS

The intermediate and limited models were comparable with the full model in all analyses. In the assessment of patient risk, the limited and full models had very similar discrimination at the patient level (C-indices for all 5 procedures combined of 0.93 versus 0.91 for mortality and 0.78 versus 0.76 for morbidity) and showed good calibration across strata of patient risk. In assessing hospital-specific outcomes, results from the limited and full-risk models were highly correlated for both mortality (range 0.94 to 0.99 across the 5 operations) and morbidity (range 0.96 to 0.99).

CONCLUSIONS

Procedure-specific hospital quality measures can be adequately risk-adjusted with a limited number of variables. In the context of the ACS NSQIP, moving to a more limited model will dramatically reduce the burden of data collection for participating hospitals.

Obesity increases wound complications in rectal cancer surgery

BACKGROUND

Obesity increases the risk of wound infections following surgery for colon cancer. Considerably less data is available, however, regarding the impact of obesity on infections and wound complications after resection for rectal cancer. Additionally, the impact of minimally invasive surgery (MIS) on complications in rectal surgery remains unclear. We hypothesized that obesity is associated with prolonged operative time and more infectious complications in obese patients undergoing both MIS and open surgery for rectal cancer.

MATERIALS AND METHODS

Review of retrospective surgical database.

RESULTS

One hundred fifty patients underwent surgery for rectal cancer from 2002 to 2009. Open cases accounted for 72% (n = 108) and MIS for 28% (n = 42) of cases. BMI did not correlate with increased operative time in open rectal surgery, but in MIS patients, operative time increased from a median of 254 min in the lowest quartile of BMI to 333 min in the highest quartile (P < 0.004). Superficial wound infections in open rectal surgery increased from 17% to 52% with increasing BMI (P < 0.005). The increased rate of wound complications persisted in the MIS group. Rate of superficial wound infections and subsequent open packing in the MIS group increased from 0% in the lowest BMI quartile to 33% in the highest quartile (P < 0.029 and P < 0.007, respectively).

CONCLUSIONS

Elevated BMI is associated with increased wound complications in both minimally invasive and open rectal surgery. This trend may be related to prolonged operative time in obese patients, particularly in MIS. Our observations suggest that more aggressive techniques to prevent infection are warranted in obese patients undergoing rectal surgery.