How can the implementation of guidelines be improved?

Which factors determine clinicians' policy and attitudes towards medication and parent training for children with Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder?

Behavioral parent and teacher training and stimulant medication are recommended interventions for children with attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). However, not all children with ADHD receive this evidence-based care, and the aim of the current study was to find out why. More specifically, we investigated clinicians' policy, guideline use, and attitudes towards medication and parent training when treating children with ADHD, as well as several factors that could affect this. A total of 219 Dutch clinicians (mainly psychologists, psychiatrists and educationalists) completed a survey. Clinicians were likely to recommend medication more often than parent training, and clinicians' policy to recommend medication and parent training was positively associated with their attitudes towards these interventions. Less experienced clinicians and those with a non-medical background reported lower rates of guideline use, whereas clinicians with a medical background reported less positive attitudes towards parent training. Furthermore, a substantial portion of the clinicians based their decision to recommend parent training on their clinical judgement (e.g., prior estimations of efficacy, perceived low abilities/motivation of parents), and many clinicians reported barriers for referral to parent training, such as waiting lists or a lack of skilled staff. To achieve better implementation of evidence-based care for children with ADHD, guidelines should be communicated better towards clinicians. Researchers and policy-makers should further focus on barriers that prevent implementation of parent training, which are suggested by the discrepancy between clinicians' overall positive attitude towards parent training and the relatively low extent to which clinicians actually advise parent training.

Improving asthma care with Asthma-COPD Afterhours Respiratory Nurse at Emergency (A-CARE)

BACKGROUND

Emergency departments (ED) are important providers of asthma care, particularly after-hours. We identified gaps for quality improvement such as suboptimal adherence rates to three key recommendations from the Global Initiative for Asthma (GINA) guidelines for discharge management asthma guidelines. These were: the prescription of oral and inhaled corticosteroids (OCS and ICS) and issuance of outpatient follow-up for patients discharged from the ED.

AIM

To achieve an adherence rate of 80% to GINA guidelines for ED discharge management by providing after-hours asthma counselling services.

METHODS

We implemented Asthma-COPD Afterhours Respiratory Nurse at Emergency (A-CARE) according to the Plan-Do-Study-Act (PDSA) framework to provide after-hours asthma counselling and clinical decision support to ED physicians three nights a week. Data on adherence rates to the GINA guidelines were collected and analysed on a run chart.

RESULTS

After 17 months' follow-up, a sustained improvement was observed in patients reviewed by A-CARE in the median adherence rates to OCS prescription (58% vs 86%), ICS initiation (27% vs 67%) and issuance of follow-up (69% vs 92%), respectively. The overall impact was, however, limited by a suboptimal referral rate to A-CARE (16%) in a clinical audit of all ED patients with asthma. Nonetheless, in this audit, attendance rates for patients referred to our respiratory department for follow-up were higher in those receiving asthma counselling compared with those who did not (41.7% vs 15.9%, p=0.0388).

CONCLUSION

Sustained improvements in the adherence rates to guidelines were achieved for patients reviewed by A-CARE but were limited in overall impact due to suboptimal referral rate. We plan to improve the quality of asthma care by implementing further PDSA cycles to increase the referral rates to A-CARE.

Identifying target audiences: who are the guidelines for? : article 1 in Integrating and coordinating efforts in COPD guideline development. An official ATS/ERS workshop report

BACKGROUND

Professional societies, like many other organizations around the world, have recognized the need to use rigorous processes to ensure that health care recommendations are informed by the best available research evidence. Different clinical practice guidelines addressing the management of the same disease may vary widely in the evidence used and the format of the recommendations, with the result that not all are appropriate for all audiences. This is the first of a series of 14 articles that clinicians, methodologists, and researchers from around the world prepared to advise those developing guidelines in respiratory and other diseases about the potential impact of identifying the target audiences for their clinical practice guidelines.

METHODS

In this review we address the following questions. (1) Which audiences are interested in a chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) guideline? (2) How many audiences can be addressed in a single COPD guideline? (3) What is the purpose of the guidelines? (4) Who should be included on the guideline panel? We collected information by searching PubMed and reviewing information from groups that are currently making and using respiratory disease guidelines, as well as from workshop discussions. Our conclusions are based on available evidence, consideration of what guideline developers are doing, and the opinions of those who attended the workshop.

RESULTS AND CONCLUSIONS

Clinicians desire COPD and other guidelines that are concise, use evidence from practices similar to theirs, and whose authors have expertise in providing care in similar settings and with similar patients. In the case of COPD, barriers to generalists' use of guidelines include lack of awareness of the guidelines, failure to embrace the diagnostic methods as capable of providing definitive confirmation of COPD, and, most importantly, failure of previous guidelines to address the treatment of COPD in the context of the broad range of multiple morbidities that affect most people with COPD. COPD specialists may require guidelines with more details regarding complex COPD management. The purpose of the guidelines may determine the appropriate audience. Guidelines developed to improve care by enhancing education may have a very different audience than guidelines designed to improve care by limiting the scope of practice, punishing noncompliance, or saving money. The purpose will drive dissemination and implementation strategies, but should not influence the methods used to develop a guideline. Clinicians desire guidelines, but data suggest that the current development systems, content, format, and dissemination strategies may need to be altered to fit these audiences. After the purpose and audience are determined, the guideline committee must decide how to fairly address these audiences, which will usually require seeking their input.

Necessary alternatives: patients' views of asthma treatment

This article is based on semistructured interviews and focus groups conducted with 27 asthma patients in The Netherlands who chose complementary and alternative medicine (CAM) for treatment of their condition. All subjects were contacted through an online forum for asthma patients hosted by the Dutch Asthma Foundation. Nineteen subjects (12 women and seven men) between the ages of 29 and 65 years participated in the interviews, held between June 2009 and January 2010. All of the participating subjects had experience with conventional medications, including anti-inflammatory corticosteroids and bronchodilators. For the focus group meeting, held in February 2010, the sample included seven subjects (four women and three men) between the ages of 31 and 46 years, none of whom had ever used conventional medication and all of whom were using CAM. All subjects in the sample had been diagnosed with asthma by their physician or lung specialist. The study examined the causes of patient noncompliance with the prescribed medical regime. It is argued that evidence-based rationality on the part of subjects is an overlooked dimension of their experience of asthma. This study demonstrates the role that the patients' social network, including medical practitioners, friends, and family, and other asthmatics, plays in the process of decision-making and choices about treating asthma. It also demonstrates the role of patients' information-searching strategies. The author concludes that patient noncompliance with commonly prescribed medication and selection of alternative medical treatment is less a matter of denial of their diagnosis or the severity of their illness, but more a matter of choice informed by evidence-based rationality.

Improving quality of care for patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease

A chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) project was initiated at 18 primary care clinical practices located in rural areas of northeastern Maine to improve the diagnosis and treatment of patients with COPD through the adoption of evidence-based and best practice clinical guidelines for care management. Clinical guidelines based on the Global Initiative for Chronic Obstructive Lung Disease (GOLD) were implemented by the practices using the Institute for Healthcare Improvement Breakthrough Series learning session model. Practice barriers and patient barriers were identified through focus groups and were then addressed at the learning sessions and through direct contact with the practices. To evaluate the improvements that were a result of the project, changes in clinical practice and patient care were measured pre and post initiative. The greatest improvements in COPD patient care were in the areas of smoking cessation counseling, annual influenza vaccinations, discussion of self-management goals, and diet/exercise counseling. Participants reported that the collaborative nature of the project allowed for mutual learning, provided teams with support to identify and overcome barriers, and fostered teamwork to find solutions to shared problems.

Barriers to adherence to asthma management guidelines among inner-city primary care providers

BACKGROUND

Health care provider adherence to national asthma guidelines is critical in translating evidence-based recommendations into improved outcomes. Unfortunately, provider adherence to the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute (NHLBI) guidelines remains low.

OBJECTIVE

To identify barriers to guideline adherence among primary care professionals providing care to inner-city, minority patients with asthma.

METHODS

We surveyed 202 providers from 4 major general medicine practices in East Harlem in New York, New York. The study outcome was self-reported adherence to 5 NHLBI guideline components: inhaled corticosteroid (ICS) use, peak flow (PF) monitoring, action plan use, allergy testing, and influenza vaccination. Potential barriers included lack of agreement with guideline, lack of self-efficacy, lack of outcome expectancy, and external barriers.

RESULTS

Most providers reported adhering to the NHLBI guidelines for ICS use (62%) and for influenza vaccinations (73%). Self-reported adherence was 34% for PF monitoring, 9% for asthma action plan use, and 10% for allergy testing. Multivariate analyses showed that self-efficacy was associated with increased adherence to ICS use (odds ratio [OR], 2.8; P = .03), PF monitoring (OR, 2.3; P = .05), action plan use (OR, 4.9; P = .03), and influenza vaccinations (OR, 3.5; P = .05). Conversely, greater expected patient adherence was associated with increased adherence to PF monitoring (OR, 3.3; P = .03) and influenza vaccination (OR, 3.5; P = .01). Familiarity with specific guideline components and higher level of training were also predictors of adherence.

CONCLUSIONS

Lack of outcome expectancy and poor provider self-efficacy prevent providers from adhering to national asthma guidelines. Efforts to improve provider adherence should address these specific barriers.

Forced expiratory volume in 1 second percentage improves the classification of severity among children with asthma

OBJECTIVE

Spirometry is an important component of the National Asthma Education and Prevention Program guidelines for asthma, yet published data show variable associations between forced expiratory volume in 1 second percentage (FEV1%) predicted, symptoms and health care utilization. The objective of this analysis was to examine the association between FEV1% and future risk of exacerbations among a well-characterized population of children with asthma.

METHODS

Using data that are available from the Childhood Asthma Management Program, we examined the relationship between prebronchodilator FEV1% and important clinical outcomes. Multiple observations of FEV1 were available for each patient; multivariate regression analysis, using a general estimating equation approach, was used to control for the correlation between repeated measurements among individuals and potential confounders. FEV1% was categorized into 4 levels and as a continuous variable. Outcomes of interest included mean symptom score (0-3), episode-free days, and asthma-related events (oral steroid use, emergency department visits, and hospitalizations) during the ensuing 4-month period. Our analysis was limited to the placebo group (N = 417).

RESULTS

We observed a clear relationship between prebronchodilator FEV1% and important clinical outcomes. In multivariable models that simultaneously controlled for covariates of interest, age at baseline, time, previous event history, and nocturnal awakenings, a significant relationship between FEV1% and asthma symptoms and serious asthma exacerbations (oral steroids, emergency department visits, and hospitalizations) was observed. Compared with children with an FEV1% > or = 100%, children with FEV1% 80% to 99%, 60% to 79%, and < 60% were 1.3, 1.8, and 4.8, respectively, more likely to have a serious asthma exacerbation during the ensuing 4 months. CONCLUSIONS. In children with mild to moderate asthma, FEV1% predicted is independently associated with future asthma symptoms and health care utilization. Previous asthma-related hospitalizations and nocturnal symptoms also were independently associated with risk for future adverse events. FEV1 is an important component of asthma health status and asthma severity classification.

Inadequate follow-up controller medications among patients with asthma who visit the emergency department

STUDY OBJECTIVE

The purpose of this study is to determine the frequency with which primary care physicians add inhaled corticosteroids to the regimen of asthmatic patients after a visit to the emergency department (ED) among patients not previously prescribed inhaled corticosteroids and to determine the rate at which inhaled corticosteroids prescribed in the ED were continued by primary care physicians.

METHODS

We conducted a structured retrospective cohort study using electronic medical record review of consecutive patients aged 6 to 45 years, treated for acute asthma exacerbation (International Classification of Diseases, Ninth Revision code 493.00 through 493.99) in the ED during a specified 6-month period, and followed up for 1 year. The patients' first ED visit for asthma exacerbation during the study period was considered the index visit for purposes of this study.

RESULTS

Six hundred twenty-nine patients met study inclusion criteria, 414 of whom were not previously receiving inhaled corticosteroid therapy. On ED or hospital discharge, 99 (24%) of these 414 patients were prescribed an inhaled corticosteroid. Of these 99 patients, 37 patients had a primary care follow-up visit within 6 months, with 4 receiving an inhaled corticosteroid dose change and no patients having the inhaled corticosteroids discontinued. Of the 315 patients not prescribed an inhaled corticosteroid on ED or hospital discharge, 128 had a primary care follow-up visit within 6 months, with 32 (25%) patients having an inhaled corticosteroid added to their therapeutic regimen. After primary care follow-up, only 69 (42%) of the 165 patients treated in clinic were receiving an inhaled corticosteroid for control of their asthma. Patients without insurance (odds ratio 0.14; 95% confidence interval 0.027 to 0.71) and patients initially discharged home from the ED (odds ratio 0.17; 95% confidence interval 0.05 to 0.53) were much less likely to receive inhaled corticosteroids at follow-up on multivariate logistic regression adjusting for race, sex, insurance status, and initial disposition.

CONCLUSION

Primary care physicians infrequently add controller medications (inhaled corticosteroids) at follow-up to the regimen of asthmatic patients after a visit to the ED. Emergency physicians should be encouraged to evaluate chronic asthma burden among patients presenting with exacerbation, educate asthmatic patients, and prescribe controller medications, such as inhaled corticosteroids, for those with persistent symptoms.

Improving guideline adherence for the diagnosis of ADHD in an ambulatory pediatric setting

BACKGROUND

The American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) has published clinical practice guidelines for the diagnosis of Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD). However, implementation of guidelines has been notoriously difficult to achieve in the wider context of changing individual physicians' clinical practice.

OBJECTIVE

Implement a formalized diagnostic protocol for ADHD and study whether this protocol improved adherence of pediatric residents and faculty to published guidelines for the diagnosis of ADHD.

METHODS

Quasi-experimental retrospective record review of 63 pediatric patients evaluated for ADHD by pediatric residents and faculty in an outpatient pediatric clinic before (n = 25) and after (n = 38) implementation of a formal diagnostic process for ADHD. The key elements of the new diagnostic process include completion of a semistructured interview and mandatory rating scales for home and school. The published AAP guidelines include 1) documentation of Diagnostic and Statistical Manual for Mental Disorders (DSM) IV criteria; 2) evidence of core symptoms obtained directly from home and 3) from school; and 4) assessment for coexisting conditions. Adherence was assessed to each criterion individually (yes/no) and was summarized in a single score.

RESULTS

Only 4% of clinicians and nurse practitioners diagnosing children in the before group adhered to all 4 AAP guidelines, compared to 82% in the after group (P < .001). Significant improvement was observed across each of the 4 criteria in the AAP guidelines. Moreover, the improvement in adherence to all 4 guidelines was noted for residents and faculty.

CONCLUSION

A significant improvement in adherence to AAP guidelines was obtained for all providers through implementation of a structured diagnostic approach to ADHD.

The promises and pitfalls of evidence-based medicine

Evidence-based medicine (EBM) aims to address the persistent problem of clinical practice variation with the help of various tools, including standardized practice guidelines. While advocates welcome the stronger scientific foundation of such guidelines, critics fear that they will lead to "cookbook medicine." Studies show, however, that few guidelines lead to consistent changes in provider behavior. The hopes, fears, and mixed record of EBM are rooted in the traditional professional perspective of the clinician as sole decisionmaker. Multifaceted implementation strategies that take the collaborative nature of medical work into consideration promise more effective changes in clinical practice.

The quality of spirometric examinations in Finland: results from a national questionnaire survey

National treatment programmes for asthma and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) have in the past few years increased the need for spirometry in Finland. The purpose of this study was to determine, by means of a national questionnaire survey, the quality and number of spirometric examinations performed in Finland in 1998, the year when the national COPD programme was initiated. We estimated that 395 000-425 000 spirometric examinations were performed in Finland in 1998. The mean quality of spirometry was evaluated as moderate, and the quality index developed for this study indicated an average of scores of 67 (max 100), ranging between 43 and 88 in the whole country. The most common qualitative insufficiencies in spirometric examinations were found in preparation of the subject for the examination, performance of the examination, recognition of a successful spirometric curve and evaluation of reproducibility of the examination. Furthermore, the time reserved in the reports for performing the examination was often very short. However, in comparison with the previous questionnaire survey in Finland (in 1990), the quality of spirometry had markedly improved.