Association Between Patients' Self-Reported Gaps in Care Coordination and Preventable Adverse Outcomes: a...

Area of Science:

• Healthcare research
• Patient safety
• Health outcomes

Background:

• Patient perceptions of care coordination gaps are not well understood in relation to clinical outcomes.
• Assessing the significance of patient-reported care coordination issues is crucial for improving healthcare quality.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate the association between patient-reported gaps in ambulatory care coordination and patient-reported preventable adverse outcomes.
• To determine if patient experiences with fragmented care correlate with negative health events.

Main Methods:

• A cross-sectional survey was administered to older adults (≥65 years) from the Reasons for Geographic and Racial Differences in Stroke (REGARDS) study.
• Logistic regression analysis was used to examine the relationship between reported care coordination gaps and preventable adverse outcomes, adjusting for confounders.
• The study included 7,568 participants who reported at least two ambulatory visits and providers in the past year.

Main Results:

• Over one-third of participants (38.1%) reported at least one gap in care coordination.
• Nearly 10% (9.8%) of participants reported at least one preventable adverse outcome.
• A significant association was found between experiencing care coordination gaps and increased odds of preventable adverse outcomes (aOR 1.55, 95% CI 1.33-1.81).

Conclusions:

• Patient-reported gaps in care coordination are significantly associated with an increased risk of preventable adverse outcomes.
• Leveraging patient insights is essential for identifying and rectifying care coordination deficiencies.
• Interventions focused on patient-reported experiences can enhance healthcare safety and quality.