Computer-Assisted Protocol-Adherent Blood Lipid Evaluation in Vascular Outpatients (CAPABLE-Vascular)

Area of Science:

• Vascular Surgery
• Health Informatics
• Clinical Management

Background:

• Vascular surgery outpatient clinics face challenges in accessing test results.
• This lack of data hinders effective management of vascular risk factors, including dyslipidemia and diabetes mellitus.
• Routine investigations are crucial for proactive patient care and risk factor control.

Purpose of the Study:

• To assess the feasibility of computer-assisted processes for ordering routine investigations.
• To improve the management of vascular risk factors through timely laboratory tests.
• To evaluate the impact of a rule-based system on test ordering in vascular clinics.

Main Methods:

• A rule-based computer system was developed by clinician-programmers.
• The system facilitated the ordering of lipid studies and HbA1c tests before appointments.
• A pre-intervention historical control period was compared with a post-intervention period over four weeks each.

Main Results:

• The study included 1165 patients.
• Pre-intervention, only 38.0% had HbA1c and 17.9% had lipid studies ordered within six months.
• Post-intervention, 100% of vascular outpatients had HbA1c and lipid studies ordered (p < 0.001).

Conclusions:

• Computer-assisted processes are feasible for requesting routine outpatient investigations.
• The intervention demonstrated early effectiveness in increasing test ordering rates.
• Further research is needed to evaluate the impact on clinical endpoints.