Improving e-discharge letters for Permanent pacemaker insertions at Wansbeck General Hospital

Area of Science:

• Cardiology
• Medical Informatics

Background:

• Permanent pacemaker implantation is a common procedure with ~670 patients annually at Wansbeck General Hospital.
• Discharge letters are crucial for patient follow-up but previously lacked essential information due to inaccessible guidelines for junior doctors.

Purpose of the Study:

• To assess the impact of implementing standardized discharge letter guidelines on the quality of information provided to patients undergoing permanent pacemaker implantation.

Main Methods:

• A departmental review established eight essential criteria for pacemaker implantation discharge letters.
• A proforma was published on the cardiology ward in October 2011.
• Letter audits were conducted before (n=10) and after (n=70) the proforma's introduction.

Main Results:

• Pre-proforma audits showed 0% of letters contained all required information.
• Post-proforma audits demonstrated 100% compliance with the eight essential criteria.
• Improvement in the inclusion of specific details like indication for insertion and device make was observed.

Conclusions:

• A simple, accessible proforma dramatically improved the completeness and quality of electronic discharge letters for pacemaker patients.
• Standardized guidelines are effective in enhancing patient care communication in cardiology.