From metrics to practice: identifying preventable emergency department visits for patients with cancer

Oncology patients disproportionately utilize the emergency department (ED) for symptom management. At our institution, approximately 1 in 4 visits to the ED by oncology patients led to discharge. We hypothesized that many of the visits leading to ED discharge would be potentially preventable (PP).

We retrospectively characterized ED discharges of oncology patients. Visits were classified by presenting symptom, type of cancer, and time of ED visit. Chart reviewers were additionally asked whether each case could have been safely managed as an outpatient.

We analyzed 100 ED discharges in a 4-month period in 2016 and 2017. Gastrointestinal (GI) complaints, pain, and fever were the most common presenting symptoms for these visits. We rated 44 of 100 ED discharges as potentially preventable. Given we analyzed only ED discharges which comprise about 25% of ED visits for patients with cancer, overall about 10% of all ED visits by these patients may be preventable. We also found that ED visits without a clinic appointment or phone call to the clinic on the day of ED presentation were more likely to be preventable (51% vs 27%, OR 2.9, p = 0.026).

Many ED visits by oncology patients may be preventable and occur for symptoms which can be managed as an outpatient. More of these visits also appear to occur in those who do not reach a clinic member prior to the visit. These findings suggest that improved access to clinics and standardized outpatient symptom management are next steps to consider in preventing ED visits in this vulnerable population.