Quality Review Committee Audit Improves Thoracic Enhanced Recovery After Surgery Protocol Compliance

Compliance with thoracic Enhanced Recovery After Surgery (ERAS) protocols is critical to achieving their maximum benefits. We sought to examine utilization of quality review meetings as a method to improve protocol compliance through identification and resolution of barriers with compliance.

A multidisciplinary committee implemented a thoracic ERAS protocol for anatomic lung resections across five hospitals within our health system. Compliance data at one institution were tracked for 4 mo after initiation of the ERAS protocol; a quality review meeting was held at one hospital, and two additional months of compliance data were recorded. Outcomes of interest were compliance changes to five protocol elements. Pathway elements deferred due to "mindful deviation" were excluded. Chi-square and Fisher's exact tests were used to compare compliance differences.

We included 81 patients: 53 patients before the quality review meeting and 28 after. There were 405 compliance opportunities; 68 (17%) were excluded for mindful deviation, leaving 337 (83%) for inclusion. Overall compliance improved from 53% before to 84% after the quality review meeting. Compliance to avoiding intraoperative urinary catheters, placing chest tubes to water seal in postanesthesia care unit, liberal chest tube removal, and postoperative multimodal pain regimen use improved after the quality review meeting (P values <0.05). Use of preoperative pain bundles was not significantly different (87% versus 96%, P = 0.25).

Conducting a quality review meeting significantly improved ERAS protocol element use at our intervention healthcare region. This methodology should be considered at other institutions implementing surgical protocols.