1. Choosing Wisely: Decreasing the incidence of perioperative blood transfusions in gynecologic oncology.
- Author
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Prescott LS, Taylor JS, Enbaya A, Marten CA, Myers KN, Meyer LA, Ramirez PT, Levenback CF, Bodurka DC, and Schmeler KM
- Subjects
- Aged, Blood Loss, Surgical, Blood Transfusion economics, Cost Savings statistics & numerical data, Female, Guideline Adherence, Gynecologic Surgical Procedures adverse effects, Health Care Costs statistics & numerical data, Humans, Interrupted Time Series Analysis, Middle Aged, Perioperative Period, Practice Guidelines as Topic, Prospective Studies, Surgical Wound Infection etiology, Blood Transfusion statistics & numerical data, Blood Transfusion trends, Gynecologic Surgical Procedures statistics & numerical data, Quality Improvement
- Abstract
Objective: To evaluate the efficacy and economic impact of a transfusion reduction initiative for patients undergoing gynecologic surgery., Methods: We conducted a prospective healthcare improvement study to align transfusion practices with the American Society of Hematology's Choosing Wisely® campaign. Baseline transfusion rates were determined retrospectively for all major gynecologic surgical cases from 3/1/14 to 6/30/14. Data for the post-intervention period from 5/15/15 to 5/16/16 were captured prospectively. The primary outcome was transfusion within 72 h of surgery. Secondary outcomes included perioperative morbidity, mortality, number of units ordered per transfusion episode and cost., Results: We identified 1281 surgical cases, 334 in the baseline and 947 in the post-implementation cohort. The baseline cohort was noted to have a higher median estimated blood loss (100 v. 75 mL, P < 0.01). Otherwise, there were no differences in clinical or perioperative characteristics between the two cohorts. The perioperative transfusion rate decreased from 24% to 11% (adjusted OR 0.27, 95% CI 0.16 to 0.45; P < 0.001). The perioperative laparotomy transfusion rate decreased from 48% to 23% (adjusted OR 0.21, 95% CI 0.12, 0.37; P < 0.001). The number of occurrences in which more than one unit of blood was ordered at a time decreased from 65% to 23%, P < 0.001. The incidence of surgical site infections declined in the post-intervention group, otherwise there were no differences in 30-day mortality, cardiac, venous thromboembolism or readmission rates between the groups. The projected cost savings was $161,112 over the 12-month intervention period., Conclusions: Implementation of an educational based transfusion reduction program was associated with substantial reductions in perioperative transfusions and cost without significant changes in morbidity or mortality., (Copyright © 2019 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.)
- Published
- 2019
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