Patient Satisfaction with Care After Coronary Revascularization

Area of Science:

• Cardiology
• Health Services Research
• Patient Outcomes

Background:

• The Bridging the Divides (Bridges) program, funded by the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, established a post-hospitalization care management system for ischemic heart disease patients.
• This system integrated health informatics with direct patient care to improve outcomes.

Purpose of the Study:

• To evaluate patient satisfaction with the Bridges program.
• To identify patient characteristics associated with higher satisfaction levels.

Main Methods:

• Adult patients undergoing percutaneous coronary intervention, coronary artery bypass grafting, or catheterization plus acute myocardial infarction were eligible.
• A survey assessed satisfaction with care received, appreciated aspects, and challenges faced.
• Statistical analyses compared satisfaction across procedure types, age, sex, race, comorbidity count, and length of stay.

Main Results:

• A statistically significant difference in overall patient satisfaction was observed among different procedure types (p = 0.023).
• Significant interactions between procedure type and patient sex (p = 0.052) and procedure type and age (p = 0.039) were noted.
• No significant differences in satisfaction were found based on age, sex, race, comorbidity count, or length of stay.

Conclusions:

• Patients undergoing coronary artery bypass grafting reported higher satisfaction compared to those who had percutaneous coronary intervention or catheterization plus acute myocardial infarction.
• Significant interactions between procedure type, age, and sex were identified, highlighting demographic influences on satisfaction.