Enhancing Preventive Care for Adults 50+ Through Pre-Visit Planning in Primary Care

Preventive care is often overlooked in older adults due to the complexity of care. A pre-visit planning checklist may be effective in enhancing prevention.

A Midwest internal medicine department identified the need to increase age-appropriate vaccinations and screenings in adults 50 and older.

A pre-visit planning checklist for cancer screenings, bone density scans, and immunizations, guided by the American Medical Association, was implemented. The number of ordered preventive measures was compared 3 months pre and post-implementation.

Staff members reviewed patient charts prior to appointments using the pre-visit checklist, which guided staff to look at appropriate preventive tasks and notify the provider of needed items.

There was a significant increase in the percentage of patients who received orders for colonoscopies (10.6% vs 16.6%) and bone density scans (2.9% vs 5.7%).

Pre-visit planning may be an effective way to increase preventive measures in primary care.