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TUCSON, ARIZ. – A retrospective study at the Mayo Clinic Arizona found a near doubling in the percentage of patients who had contact with the medical system in the 2 weeks following surgery.
“That’s a big change and a burden for the clinician, so they need to anticipate that,” Rachael Haverland, MD, a fellow at Mayo Clinic Arizona, Phoenix, said in an interview at the annual scientific meeting of the Society of Gynecologic Surgeons.
“A lot of research has gone into the safety profile of ERAS, the cost-effectiveness of ERAS, and the effects on the patient, but there has not been a lot of research on how it affects the clinician’s practice. I think it’s very important for physicians to know that so that they can plan ahead, maybe add more clinical staff to help with some of these phone calls, and maybe setting aside special clinic time for unscheduled visits to address some of these patient concerns,” she added.
The most common issues revolve around pain management – how to take medications and how to manage pain in the context of few restrictions – suggesting that preoperative counseling could help. “Setting expectations for pain, going through their medication regimen after surgery so they know what medications they can take, how to control their pain, and their restrictions. We don’t have many restrictions. We want them walking even the same day, and there are no dietary restrictions. Just reiterating some of those facts, because it’s still new, especially to patients. They’re not used to having limited restrictions,” Dr. Haverland said.
Other patient concerns included dysuria and frequency of urination following surgery. The least common questions were related to activity restrictions, according to Dr. Haverland.
The researchers are developing a preoperative video for ERAS that they hope will improve matters. It aims to anticipate patient questions before and after surgery, and they plan to track its impact on clinician burden. “I’m hoping that when we do our next set of data that it cuts down on some of those unscheduled patient hours,” she said.
The researchers examined data from 200 hysterectomy patients. A total of 90 underwent surgery in 2012, before ERAS was implemented, and 110 in 2014, 1 year after ERAS was begun. They looked at patient phone calls, ED visits, and unscheduled postoperative visits.
Before ERAS, in the 2 weeks after surgery, 42.2% of patients had any medical care. That rose to 74.5% after ERAS. The difference seemed to be driven by phone calls, which rose from 38.9% before ERAS to 68.2% after (P less than .0001). There also was a trend toward more in-person visits (12.2% vs. 21.8%; odds ratio, 2.00; P = .08) and unscheduled office visits (10.0% vs. 18.2%; P = .01).
Patients undergoing a concomitant sling procedure were more likely to seek in-person medical care within 2 weeks regardless of ERAS protocol (OR, 3.16; P = .04). The researchers found no significant differences in readmission rates, operative time, blood loss, or ED visits.
The study received no funding. Dr. Haverland reported no relevant financial disclosures.
SOURCE: Haverland R et al. SGS 2019, Oral Poster 05.
TUCSON, ARIZ. – A retrospective study at the Mayo Clinic Arizona found a near doubling in the percentage of patients who had contact with the medical system in the 2 weeks following surgery.
“That’s a big change and a burden for the clinician, so they need to anticipate that,” Rachael Haverland, MD, a fellow at Mayo Clinic Arizona, Phoenix, said in an interview at the annual scientific meeting of the Society of Gynecologic Surgeons.
“A lot of research has gone into the safety profile of ERAS, the cost-effectiveness of ERAS, and the effects on the patient, but there has not been a lot of research on how it affects the clinician’s practice. I think it’s very important for physicians to know that so that they can plan ahead, maybe add more clinical staff to help with some of these phone calls, and maybe setting aside special clinic time for unscheduled visits to address some of these patient concerns,” she added.
The most common issues revolve around pain management – how to take medications and how to manage pain in the context of few restrictions – suggesting that preoperative counseling could help. “Setting expectations for pain, going through their medication regimen after surgery so they know what medications they can take, how to control their pain, and their restrictions. We don’t have many restrictions. We want them walking even the same day, and there are no dietary restrictions. Just reiterating some of those facts, because it’s still new, especially to patients. They’re not used to having limited restrictions,” Dr. Haverland said.
Other patient concerns included dysuria and frequency of urination following surgery. The least common questions were related to activity restrictions, according to Dr. Haverland.
The researchers are developing a preoperative video for ERAS that they hope will improve matters. It aims to anticipate patient questions before and after surgery, and they plan to track its impact on clinician burden. “I’m hoping that when we do our next set of data that it cuts down on some of those unscheduled patient hours,” she said.
The researchers examined data from 200 hysterectomy patients. A total of 90 underwent surgery in 2012, before ERAS was implemented, and 110 in 2014, 1 year after ERAS was begun. They looked at patient phone calls, ED visits, and unscheduled postoperative visits.
Before ERAS, in the 2 weeks after surgery, 42.2% of patients had any medical care. That rose to 74.5% after ERAS. The difference seemed to be driven by phone calls, which rose from 38.9% before ERAS to 68.2% after (P less than .0001). There also was a trend toward more in-person visits (12.2% vs. 21.8%; odds ratio, 2.00; P = .08) and unscheduled office visits (10.0% vs. 18.2%; P = .01).
Patients undergoing a concomitant sling procedure were more likely to seek in-person medical care within 2 weeks regardless of ERAS protocol (OR, 3.16; P = .04). The researchers found no significant differences in readmission rates, operative time, blood loss, or ED visits.
The study received no funding. Dr. Haverland reported no relevant financial disclosures.
SOURCE: Haverland R et al. SGS 2019, Oral Poster 05.
TUCSON, ARIZ. – A retrospective study at the Mayo Clinic Arizona found a near doubling in the percentage of patients who had contact with the medical system in the 2 weeks following surgery.
“That’s a big change and a burden for the clinician, so they need to anticipate that,” Rachael Haverland, MD, a fellow at Mayo Clinic Arizona, Phoenix, said in an interview at the annual scientific meeting of the Society of Gynecologic Surgeons.
“A lot of research has gone into the safety profile of ERAS, the cost-effectiveness of ERAS, and the effects on the patient, but there has not been a lot of research on how it affects the clinician’s practice. I think it’s very important for physicians to know that so that they can plan ahead, maybe add more clinical staff to help with some of these phone calls, and maybe setting aside special clinic time for unscheduled visits to address some of these patient concerns,” she added.
The most common issues revolve around pain management – how to take medications and how to manage pain in the context of few restrictions – suggesting that preoperative counseling could help. “Setting expectations for pain, going through their medication regimen after surgery so they know what medications they can take, how to control their pain, and their restrictions. We don’t have many restrictions. We want them walking even the same day, and there are no dietary restrictions. Just reiterating some of those facts, because it’s still new, especially to patients. They’re not used to having limited restrictions,” Dr. Haverland said.
Other patient concerns included dysuria and frequency of urination following surgery. The least common questions were related to activity restrictions, according to Dr. Haverland.
The researchers are developing a preoperative video for ERAS that they hope will improve matters. It aims to anticipate patient questions before and after surgery, and they plan to track its impact on clinician burden. “I’m hoping that when we do our next set of data that it cuts down on some of those unscheduled patient hours,” she said.
The researchers examined data from 200 hysterectomy patients. A total of 90 underwent surgery in 2012, before ERAS was implemented, and 110 in 2014, 1 year after ERAS was begun. They looked at patient phone calls, ED visits, and unscheduled postoperative visits.
Before ERAS, in the 2 weeks after surgery, 42.2% of patients had any medical care. That rose to 74.5% after ERAS. The difference seemed to be driven by phone calls, which rose from 38.9% before ERAS to 68.2% after (P less than .0001). There also was a trend toward more in-person visits (12.2% vs. 21.8%; odds ratio, 2.00; P = .08) and unscheduled office visits (10.0% vs. 18.2%; P = .01).
Patients undergoing a concomitant sling procedure were more likely to seek in-person medical care within 2 weeks regardless of ERAS protocol (OR, 3.16; P = .04). The researchers found no significant differences in readmission rates, operative time, blood loss, or ED visits.
The study received no funding. Dr. Haverland reported no relevant financial disclosures.
SOURCE: Haverland R et al. SGS 2019, Oral Poster 05.
REPORTING FROM SGS 2019