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Clinical Question: What is the extent of, and factors associated with, testing overuse in U.S. hospitals for pre-operative evaluation and syncope.
Background: Little is known about the extent and drivers of overuse by hospitalists.
Study design: Two vignettes (pre-operative evaluation and syncope) were mailed to hospitalists. They were asked to identify what most hospitalists at their institution would recommend and “the most likely primary driver of the hospitalist’s decision.”
Setting: Random selection of hospitalists from SHM member database and SHM national meeting attendees.
Synopsis: Investigators mailed 1,753 surveys and received a 68% response rate. For the pre-operative evaluation vignette, 52% of hospitalists reported overuse of pre-operative testing. When a family member was a physician and requested further testing, overuse increased significantly to 65%. For the syncope vignette, any choice involving admission was considered overuse.
Eighty-two percent of respondents reported overuse; when the wife was a lawyer or requested further testing, overuse remained the same. Overuse in both cases was more frequent due to a hospitalist’s desire to reassure patients or themselves, rather than a belief that it was clinically indicated (pre-operative evaluation, 63% vs. 37%; syncope, 69% vs. 31%, P<0.001).
The survey responses do not necessarily represent actual clinical choices, and the hospitalist sample may not be representative of all hospitalists; however, this study shows that efforts to reduce overuse in hospitals need to move beyond financial incentives and/or informing providers of evidence-based recommendations.
Bottom line: A survey of hospitalists showed substantial overuse in two common clinical situations, syncope and pre-operative evaluation, mostly driven by a desire to reassure patients, families, or themselves.
Citation: Kachalia A, Berg A, Fagerlin A, et al. Overuse of testing in preoperative evaluation and syncope: a survey of hospitalists. Ann Intern Med. 2015;162(2):100-108.
Clinical Question: What is the extent of, and factors associated with, testing overuse in U.S. hospitals for pre-operative evaluation and syncope.
Background: Little is known about the extent and drivers of overuse by hospitalists.
Study design: Two vignettes (pre-operative evaluation and syncope) were mailed to hospitalists. They were asked to identify what most hospitalists at their institution would recommend and “the most likely primary driver of the hospitalist’s decision.”
Setting: Random selection of hospitalists from SHM member database and SHM national meeting attendees.
Synopsis: Investigators mailed 1,753 surveys and received a 68% response rate. For the pre-operative evaluation vignette, 52% of hospitalists reported overuse of pre-operative testing. When a family member was a physician and requested further testing, overuse increased significantly to 65%. For the syncope vignette, any choice involving admission was considered overuse.
Eighty-two percent of respondents reported overuse; when the wife was a lawyer or requested further testing, overuse remained the same. Overuse in both cases was more frequent due to a hospitalist’s desire to reassure patients or themselves, rather than a belief that it was clinically indicated (pre-operative evaluation, 63% vs. 37%; syncope, 69% vs. 31%, P<0.001).
The survey responses do not necessarily represent actual clinical choices, and the hospitalist sample may not be representative of all hospitalists; however, this study shows that efforts to reduce overuse in hospitals need to move beyond financial incentives and/or informing providers of evidence-based recommendations.
Bottom line: A survey of hospitalists showed substantial overuse in two common clinical situations, syncope and pre-operative evaluation, mostly driven by a desire to reassure patients, families, or themselves.
Citation: Kachalia A, Berg A, Fagerlin A, et al. Overuse of testing in preoperative evaluation and syncope: a survey of hospitalists. Ann Intern Med. 2015;162(2):100-108.
Clinical Question: What is the extent of, and factors associated with, testing overuse in U.S. hospitals for pre-operative evaluation and syncope.
Background: Little is known about the extent and drivers of overuse by hospitalists.
Study design: Two vignettes (pre-operative evaluation and syncope) were mailed to hospitalists. They were asked to identify what most hospitalists at their institution would recommend and “the most likely primary driver of the hospitalist’s decision.”
Setting: Random selection of hospitalists from SHM member database and SHM national meeting attendees.
Synopsis: Investigators mailed 1,753 surveys and received a 68% response rate. For the pre-operative evaluation vignette, 52% of hospitalists reported overuse of pre-operative testing. When a family member was a physician and requested further testing, overuse increased significantly to 65%. For the syncope vignette, any choice involving admission was considered overuse.
Eighty-two percent of respondents reported overuse; when the wife was a lawyer or requested further testing, overuse remained the same. Overuse in both cases was more frequent due to a hospitalist’s desire to reassure patients or themselves, rather than a belief that it was clinically indicated (pre-operative evaluation, 63% vs. 37%; syncope, 69% vs. 31%, P<0.001).
The survey responses do not necessarily represent actual clinical choices, and the hospitalist sample may not be representative of all hospitalists; however, this study shows that efforts to reduce overuse in hospitals need to move beyond financial incentives and/or informing providers of evidence-based recommendations.
Bottom line: A survey of hospitalists showed substantial overuse in two common clinical situations, syncope and pre-operative evaluation, mostly driven by a desire to reassure patients, families, or themselves.
Citation: Kachalia A, Berg A, Fagerlin A, et al. Overuse of testing in preoperative evaluation and syncope: a survey of hospitalists. Ann Intern Med. 2015;162(2):100-108.