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Grogan RS, Wieser AP, Bennie BA, Fischer CL, Paramesh V, Jarman BT. Effect of General Surgery Resident Participation in Thoracic Surgery on Oncologic Outcomes: An Observational Cohort Study. Am Surg 2024; 90:3235-3243. [PMID: 39058406 DOI: 10.1177/00031348241269407] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 07/28/2024]
Abstract
Background: Despite increasing sub-specialization, general surgeons continue to perform oncologic thoracic surgeries. Our objective was to determine whether general surgery resident participation in thoracic surgery affects surgical quality or oncologic outcomes. We hypothesized that patient outcomes with and without resident participation would be similar. Methods: We retrospectively reviewed the electronic health records of patients with stage 0-IV lung cancer undergoing oncologic pulmonary resection at BLINDED FOR REVIEW during an 11-year period (2012-2022). Patients younger than 18 years or older than 85 years were excluded, as were those who had incomplete follow-up data or were unregistered in our institutional cancer registry. Patients were divided into groups based on whether residents or staff surgeons completed >50% of the critical portions of the operation. We compared 30-day morbidity outcomes, overall survival (OS), and disease-free survival (DFS). Results: Three hundred thirteen patients met inclusion criteria. Demographic and clinical characteristics were similar between groups, as were types of surgical resection and median operative times. A statistical difference was found in the distribution of surgical approach. The odds of morbidity were 65% higher in the Staff group (OR=1.65; 95% CI, 1.007-2.71). Resident participation was not significantly associated with OS or DFS (P =.32 and P =.54, respectively). Discussion: General surgery resident involvement in lung cancer operations is not associated with longer operative times but is associated with a higher likelihood of a thoracotomy. General surgery resident involvement was associated with decreased postoperative morbidity and did not significantly affect OS or DFS.
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Affiliation(s)
- Riley S Grogan
- Department of Medical Education, Gundersen Medical Foundation, La Crosse, WI, USA
| | - Alex P Wieser
- Department of Research Navigation, Gundersen Medical Foundation, La Crosse, WI, USA
| | - Barbara A Bennie
- Department of Research Navigation, Gundersen Medical Foundation, La Crosse, WI, USA
| | - Cathy L Fischer
- Department of Research Navigation, Gundersen Medical Foundation, La Crosse, WI, USA
| | - Venki Paramesh
- Department of Cardiothoracic Surgery, Gundersen Health System, La Crosse, WI, USA
| | - Benjamin T Jarman
- Department of Medical Education, Gundersen Medical Foundation, La Crosse, WI, USA
- Department of General Surgery, Gundersen Health System, La Crosse, WI, USA
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Wish J, Villena-Vargas J, Harrison S, Lee B, Chow O, Port J, Altorki N, Stiles BM. Surgical Treatment at an Academic Medical Center is Associated with Statistically Insignificant Lung Cancer Survival Outcome Differences Related to ZIP Code. World J Surg 2023; 47:2052-2064. [PMID: 37046063 DOI: 10.1007/s00268-023-07006-4] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Accepted: 03/18/2023] [Indexed: 04/14/2023]
Abstract
BACKGROUND Low socioeconomic status is a well-characterized adverse prognostic factor in large lung cancer databases. However, such characterizations may be confounded as patients of lower socioeconomic status are more often treated at low-volume, non-academic centers. We evaluated whether socioeconomic status, as defined by ZIP code median income, was associated with differences in lung cancer resection outcomes within a high-volume academic medical center. METHODS Consecutive patients undergoing resection for non-small cell lung cancer were identified from a prospectively maintained database (2011-18). Patients were assigned an income value based on the median income of their ZIP code as determined by census-based geographic data. We stratified the population into income quintiles representative of SES and compared demographics (chi-square), surgical outcomes, and survival (Kaplan-Meier). RESULTS We identified 1,693 patients, representing 516 ZIP codes. Income quintiles were Q1: $24,421-53,151; Q2:$53,152-73,982; Q3:$73,983-99,063; Q4:$99,064-123,842; and Q5:$123,843-250,001. Compared to Q5 patients, Q1 patients were younger (median 69 vs. 73, p < 0.001), more likely male (44 vs. 36%, p = 0.035), and more likely Asian, Black, or self-identified as other than white, Asian, or Black. (67 vs. 11%, p = < 0.001). We found minor differences in surgical outcomes and no significant difference in 5-year survival between Q1 and Q5 patients (5-year: 86 vs. 85%, p = 0.886). CONCLUSIONS Surgical care patterns at a high-volume academic medical center are similar among patients from varying ZIP codes. Surgical treatment at such a center is associated with no survival differences based upon socioeconomic status as determined by ZIP code. Centralization of lung cancer surgical care to high-volume centers may reduce socioeconomic outcome disparities.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jack Wish
- Department of Cardiothoracic Surgery, Weill Cornell Medical Center, 525 East 68th Street, New York, NY, 10065, USA.
| | - Jonathan Villena-Vargas
- Department of Cardiothoracic Surgery, Weill Cornell Medical Center, 525 East 68th Street, New York, NY, 10065, USA
| | - Sebron Harrison
- Department of Cardiothoracic Surgery, Weill Cornell Medical Center, 525 East 68th Street, New York, NY, 10065, USA
| | - Ben Lee
- Department of Cardiothoracic Surgery, Weill Cornell Medical Center, 525 East 68th Street, New York, NY, 10065, USA
| | - Oliver Chow
- Department of Cardiothoracic Surgery, Weill Cornell Medical Center, 525 East 68th Street, New York, NY, 10065, USA
| | - Jeffrey Port
- Department of Cardiothoracic Surgery, Weill Cornell Medical Center, 525 East 68th Street, New York, NY, 10065, USA
| | - Nasser Altorki
- Department of Cardiothoracic Surgery, Weill Cornell Medical Center, 525 East 68th Street, New York, NY, 10065, USA
| | - Brendon M Stiles
- Department of Cardiothoracic Surgery, Weill Cornell Medical Center, 525 East 68th Street, New York, NY, 10065, USA
- Department of Cardiovascular and Thoracic Surgery, Montefiore Medical Center, 111 East 210th Street, New York, NY, 10467, USA
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[Stereotactic body radiotherapy compared to modern surgery for treatment of early stage non-small-cell lung cancer]. Strahlenther Onkol 2022; 198:315-318. [PMID: 35022819 DOI: 10.1007/s00066-021-01897-9] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Accepted: 12/22/2021] [Indexed: 10/19/2022]
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Muñoz-Guglielmetti D, Sanchez-Lorente D, Reyes R, Martinez D, Lucena C, Boada M, Paredes P, Parera-Roig M, Vollmer I, Mases J, Martin-Deleon R, Castillo S, Benegas M, Muñoz S, Mayoral M, Cases C, Mollà M, Casas F. Pathological response to neoadjuvant therapy with chemotherapy vs chemoradiotherapy in stage III NSCLC-contribution of IASLC recommendations. World J Clin Oncol 2021; 12:1047-1063. [PMID: 34909399 PMCID: PMC8641007 DOI: 10.5306/wjco.v12.i11.1047] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/26/2021] [Revised: 06/22/2021] [Accepted: 10/25/2021] [Indexed: 02/06/2023] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND Neoadjuvant treatment (NT) with chemotherapy (Ch) is a standard option for resectable stage III (N2) NSCLC. Several studies have suggested benefits with the addition of radiotherapy (RT) to NT Ch. The International Association for the Study of Lung Cancer (IASLC) published recommendations for the pathological response (PHR) of NSCLC resection specimens after NT.
AIM To contribute to the IASLC recommendations showing our results of PHR to NT Ch vs NT chemoradiotherapy (ChRT).
METHODS We analyzed 67 consecutive patients with resectable stage III NSCLC with positive mediastinal nodes treated with surgery after NT Ch or NT ChRT between 2013 and 2020. After NT, all patients were evaluated for radiological response (RR) according to Response Evaluation Criteria in Solid Tumours criteria and evaluated for surgery by a specialized group of thoracic surgeons. All histological samples were examined by the same two pathologists. PHR was evaluated by the percentage of viable cells in the tumor and the resected lymph nodes.
RESULTS Forty patients underwent NT ChRT and 27 NT Ch. Fifty-six (83.6%) patients underwent surgery (35 ChRT and 21 Ch). The median time from ChRT to surgery was 6 wk (3-19) and 8 wk (3-21) for Ch patients. We observed significant differences in RR, with disease progression in 2.5% and 14.8% of patients with ChRT and Ch, respectively, and partial response in 62.5% ChRT vs 29.6% Ch (P = 0.025). In PHR we observed ≤ 10% viable cells in the tumor in 19 (54.4%) and 2 cases (9.5%), and in the resected lymph nodes (RLN) 30 (85.7%) and 7 (33.3%) in ChRT and Ch, respectively (P = 0.001). Downstaging was greater in the ChRT compared to the Ch group (80% vs 33.3%; P = 0.002). In the univariate analysis, NT ChRT had a significant impact on partial RR [odds ratio (OR) 12.5; 95% confidence interval (CI): 1.21 - 128.61; P = 0.034], a decreased risk of persistence of cancer cells in the tumor and RLN and an 87.5% increased probability for achieving downstaging (OR 8; 95%CI: 2.34-27.32; P = 0.001).
CONCLUSION We found significant benefits in RR and PHR by adding RT to Ch as NT. A longer follow-up is necessary to assess the impact on clinical outcomes.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - David Sanchez-Lorente
- Thoracic Surgery Department, Thoracic Unit, Hospital Clínic de Barcelona, Barcelona 08036, Cataluña, Spain
| | - Roxana Reyes
- Medical Oncology Department, Thoracic Unit, Hospital Clínic de Barcelona, Barcelona 08036, Cataluña, Spain
| | - Daniel Martinez
- Pathology Department, Thoracic Unit, Hospital Clínic de Barcelona, Barcelona 08036, Cataluña, Spain
| | - Carmen Lucena
- Pneumology Department, Thoracic Unit, Hospital Clínic de Barcelona, Barcelona 08036, Cataluña, Spain
| | - Marc Boada
- Thoracic Surgery Department, Thoracic Unit, Hospital Clínic de Barcelona, Barcelona 08036, Cataluña, Spain
| | - Pilar Paredes
- Nuclear Medicine Department, Faculty of Medicine of University of Barcelona, Institut d'Investigacions Biomèdiques August Pi i Sunyer (IDIBAPS), Barcelona 08036, Cataluña, Spain
| | - Marta Parera-Roig
- Medical Oncology Department, Hospital Comarcal de Vic, Vic 08500, Cataluña, Spain
| | - Ivan Vollmer
- Radiology Department, Thoracic Unit, Hospital Clínic de Barcelona, Barcelona 08036, Cataluña, Spain
| | - Joel Mases
- Radiation Oncology Department, Hospital Clínic de Barcelona, Barcelona 08036, Cataluña, Spain
| | - Roberto Martin-Deleon
- Pneumology Department, Hospital Universitario Reina Sofia, Córdoba 14004, Andalucía, Spain
| | - Sergi Castillo
- Medical Oncology Department, Hospital de Mollet, Mollet 08100, Cataluña, Spain
| | - Mariana Benegas
- Radiology Department, Thoracic Unit, Hospital Clínic de Barcelona, Barcelona 08036, Cataluña, Spain
| | - Silvia Muñoz
- Medical Oncology Department, Hospital General de Granollers, Granollers 08402, Cataluña, Spain
| | - Maria Mayoral
- Nuclear Medicine Department, Thoracic Unit, Hospital Clínic de Barcelona, Barcelona 08036, Cataluña, Spain
| | - Carla Cases
- Radiation Oncology Department, Hospital Clínic de Barcelona, Barcelona 08036, Cataluña, Spain
| | - Meritxell Mollà
- Radiation Oncology Department, Thoracic Unit, Hospital Clínic de Barcelona, Barcelona 08036, Cataluña, Spain
| | - Francesc Casas
- Radiation Oncology Department, Thoracic Unit, Hospital Clínic de Barcelona, Barcelona 08036, Cataluña, Spain
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Certified thoracic surgeons in Japan: a national database survey on risk-adjusted mortality associated with lung resection. Surg Today 2021; 51:1268-1275. [PMID: 33515364 DOI: 10.1007/s00595-021-02227-3] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/23/2020] [Accepted: 11/26/2020] [Indexed: 10/22/2022]
Abstract
PURPOSE We investigated the association between the number of certified general thoracic surgeons (GTSs) and the mortality after lung cancer surgery, based on the data from the National Clinical Database (NCD). METHODS We analyzed the characteristics and operative and postoperative data of 120,946 patients who underwent lung cancer surgery in one of the 905 hospitals in Japan. The number of GTSs in each hospital was categorized as 0, 1-2, or 3 or more. Multivariable analysis was applied to adjust the patients' preoperative risk factors, as identified in a previous study. We calculated 95% confidence intervals (CI) for the mortality rate based on the odds ratios (ORs). RESULTS The patients' characteristics were distributed almost uniformly regardless of the number of GTSs. Crude mortality according to the number of GTSs of 0, 1-2, or 3 or more was 0.9%, 0.8%, and 0.7%, respectively (p = 0.03). However, after adjustment, the ORs for 1-2 and 3 or more GTSs (reference: 0) were 0.86 (p = 0.23, 95% CI: 0.67-1.10) and 0.84 (p = 0.18, 95% CI: 0.64-1.09), respectively. The number of GTSs did not have a significant association with mortality. Similar results were observed for patients in the lobectomy cohort. CONCLUSION Low surgical mortality was consistent, regardless of the number of GTSs in each hospital.
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Herb J, Wolff R, McDaniel P, Holmes M, Lund J, Stitzenberg K. Rural representation of the surveillance, epidemiology, and end results database. Cancer Causes Control 2021; 32:211-220. [PMID: 33392903 DOI: 10.1007/s10552-020-01375-0] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/31/2020] [Accepted: 11/21/2020] [Indexed: 01/15/2023]
Abstract
PURPOSE SEER data are widely used to study rural-urban disparities in cancer. However, no studies have directly assessed how well the rural areas covered by SEER represent the broader rural United States. METHODS Public data sources were used to calculate county level measures of sociodemographics, health behaviors, health access and all cause cancer incidence. Driving time from each census tract to nearest Commission on Cancer certified facility was calculated and analyzed in rural SEER and non-SEER areas. RESULTS Rural SEER and non-SEER counties were similar with respect to the distribution of age, race, sex, poverty, health behaviors, provider density, and cancer screening. Overall cancer incidence was similar in rural SEER vs non-SEER counties. However, incidence for White, Hispanic, and Asian patients was higher in rural SEER vs non-SEER counties. Unadjusted median travel time was 53 min (IQR 34-82) in rural SEER tracts and 54 min (IQR 35-82) in rural non-SEER census tracts. Linear modeling showed shorter travel times across all levels of rurality in SEER vs non-SEER census tracts when controlling for region (Large Rural: 13.4 min shorter in SEER areas 95% CI 9.1;17.6; Small Rural: 16.3 min shorter 95% CI 9.1;23.6; Isolated Rural: 15.7 min shorter 95% CI 9.9;21.6). CONCLUSIONS The rural population covered by SEER data is comparable to the rural population in non-SEER areas. However, patients in rural SEER regions have shorter travel times to care than rural patients in non-SEER regions. This needs to be considered when using SEER-Medicare to study access to cancer care.
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Affiliation(s)
- Joshua Herb
- Department of Surgery, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, NC, USA. .,Cecil G. Sheps Center for Health Services Research, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, NC, 27599, USA.
| | - Rachael Wolff
- University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, NC, USA
| | - Philip McDaniel
- University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, NC, USA
| | - Mark Holmes
- Gillings School of Global Public Health, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, NC, USA.,Cecil G. Sheps Center for Health Services Research, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, NC, 27599, USA
| | - Jennifer Lund
- Gillings School of Global Public Health, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, NC, USA
| | - Karyn Stitzenberg
- Department of Surgery, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, NC, USA
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Josey MJ, Odahowski CL, Zahnd WE, Schootman M, Eberth JM. Disparities in Utilization of Medical Specialists for Colonoscopy. Health Equity 2019; 3:464-471. [PMID: 31501806 PMCID: PMC6729104 DOI: 10.1089/heq.2019.0052] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/14/2022] Open
Abstract
Purpose: Colonoscopy is the preferred screening modality for colorectal cancer (CRC) prevention. The quality of the procedure varies although medical specialists such as gastroenterologists and colorectal surgeons tend to have better outcomes. We aimed to determine whether there are demographic and clinical differences between those who received a colonoscopy from a specialist versus those who received a colonoscopy from a nonspecialist. Methods: Using the population-based South Carolina Outpatient Ambulatory Surgery Database, we looked retrospectively to obtain patient-level endoscopy records from 2010 to 2014. We used multilevel logistic regression to model whether patients saw a specialist for their colonoscopy. The primary variables were patient race and insurance type, and an interaction by rurality was tested. Results: Of the 392,285 patients included in the analysis, 81% saw a specialist for their colonoscopy. County of residence explained 30% of the variability in the outcome. Non-Hispanic black (OR=0.65; confidence interval [95% CI]: 0.64–0.67) and Hispanic patients (OR=0.75; 95% CI: 0.67–0.84) were significantly less likely than non-Hispanic white patients to see a specialist. Compared with commercial/HMO insurance, all other types were less likely to see a specialist, and even more so for rural patients. The interaction of race by rurality was not significant. Conclusions: Specialists play a key role in CRC screening and can affect later downstream outcomes. This study has shown that ethnic minorities and adults with public or other insurance, particularly in rural areas, are most likely not to see a specialist. These results are consistent with disparities in CRC incidence, mortality, and survival.
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Affiliation(s)
- Michele J Josey
- Department of Epidemiology & Biostatistics, Arnold School of Public Health, University of South Carolina, Columbia, South Carolina.,Cancer Prevention and Control Program, University of South Carolina, Columbia, South Carolina.,Rural and Minority Health Research Center, University of South Carolina, Columbia, South Carolina
| | - Cassie L Odahowski
- Department of Epidemiology & Biostatistics, Arnold School of Public Health, University of South Carolina, Columbia, South Carolina.,Cancer Prevention and Control Program, University of South Carolina, Columbia, South Carolina.,Rural and Minority Health Research Center, University of South Carolina, Columbia, South Carolina
| | - Whitney E Zahnd
- Rural and Minority Health Research Center, University of South Carolina, Columbia, South Carolina
| | - Mario Schootman
- Department of Clinical Analytics and Insights, Center for Clinical Excellence, SSM Health System, St. Louis, Missouri
| | - Jan M Eberth
- Department of Epidemiology & Biostatistics, Arnold School of Public Health, University of South Carolina, Columbia, South Carolina.,Cancer Prevention and Control Program, University of South Carolina, Columbia, South Carolina.,Rural and Minority Health Research Center, University of South Carolina, Columbia, South Carolina
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8
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Cowan RA, Tseng J, Ali N, Dearie H, Murthy V, Gennarelli RL, Iasonos A, Abu-Rustum NR, Chi DS, Long Roche KC, Brown CL. Exploring the impact of income and race on survival for women with advanced ovarian cancer undergoing primary debulking surgery at a high-volume center. Gynecol Oncol 2018; 149:43-48. [PMID: 29605049 DOI: 10.1016/j.ygyno.2017.11.012] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/19/2017] [Revised: 11/03/2017] [Accepted: 11/07/2017] [Indexed: 10/17/2022]
Abstract
OBJECTIVE To evaluate patients with advanced ovarian cancer (OC) undergoing primary debulking surgery (PDS) at a high-volume center (HVC), to determine whether socio-demographic disparities in PDS outcome and overall survival (OS) were present. METHODS All patients with stages IIIB-IV high-grade OC undergoing PDS at our institution from 1/2001-12/2013 were identified. Patients self-identified race/ethnicity as non-Hispanic White (NHW), non-Hispanic Black (NHB), Asian (A), or Hispanic (H). Income level for the entire cohort was estimated using the census-reported income level for each patient's zip code as a proxy for SES. Main outcome measures were PDS outcome and median OS. Cox proportional hazards model was used to examine differences in OS by racial/ethnic and income category, controlling for selected clinical factors. RESULTS 963 patients were identified for analysis: 855 NHW; 43 A, 34H, 28 NHB, and 3 unknown. PDS outcome was not significantly different among NHB and H as compared to NHW. Compared to NHW, Asians were more likely to have >1cm residual (AOR 2.32, 95%CI 1.1-4.9, p=0.03). Median income for the entire cohort was $85,814 (range $10,926-$231,667). After adjusting for significant prognostic factors, there were no significant differences in PDS outcome between income groups (p=0.7281). Median OS was 55.1mos (95%CI 51.8-58.5) with no significant differences in OS between the income (p=0.628) or racial/ethnic (p=0.615) groups. CONCLUSION Statistically significant socio-demographic disparities in PDS and survival outcomes were not observed among women with advanced OC treated at this HVC. Increased efforts are needed to centralize care to and increase the diversity of pts treated at HVCs.
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Affiliation(s)
- Renee A Cowan
- Gynecology Service, Department of Surgery, Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center, New York, NY, USA.
| | - Jill Tseng
- Gynecology Service, Department of Surgery, Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center, New York, NY, USA
| | - Narisha Ali
- Gynecology Service, Department of Surgery, Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center, New York, NY, USA
| | - Helen Dearie
- Gynecology Service, Department of Surgery, Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center, New York, NY, USA
| | - Vijayashree Murthy
- Department of Surgery, Saint Barnabas Medical Center, Livingston, NJ, USA
| | - Renee L Gennarelli
- Department of Epidemiology and Biostatistics, Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center, USA
| | - Alexia Iasonos
- Department of Epidemiology and Biostatistics, Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center, USA
| | - Nadeem R Abu-Rustum
- Gynecology Service, Department of Surgery, Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center, New York, NY, USA; Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Weill Cornell Medical College, New York, NY, USA
| | - Dennis S Chi
- Gynecology Service, Department of Surgery, Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center, New York, NY, USA; Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Weill Cornell Medical College, New York, NY, USA
| | - Kara C Long Roche
- Gynecology Service, Department of Surgery, Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center, New York, NY, USA; Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Weill Cornell Medical College, New York, NY, USA
| | - Carol L Brown
- Gynecology Service, Department of Surgery, Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center, New York, NY, USA; Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Weill Cornell Medical College, New York, NY, USA.
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Abstract
The quality of surgery is directly dependent on the quantity, more specifically, on the number of operations performed at a given hospital as well as on the designated surgeon. This fact is supported by numerous studies and meta-analyses that will be presented in the following text. Most of the convincing data for complex procedures can be obtained from visceral (upper and lower gastrointestinal) surgery studies. Mortality of large oncological procedures, such as esophageal or pancreatic surgery, can be reduced by 50% if a certain number of interventions are guaranteed per year. Centralizing these operations performed by specialized surgeons is the key to success. This also ensures that the minimum volume amounts within a given hospital are well above the required levels, thus enabling to teach the necessary expertise step by step. The obligatory 'learning curve' for complex interventions cannot be completed within the framework of reference figures during residency training. Together, surgeons and their respective societies have introduced a proposal for efficient case-oriented centralized surgery. Whether 'we are there yet' in surgery will depend in the end on how these efforts will be incorporated into administrative requirements and the guidelines that will then be implemented across the board.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Kim C. Honselmann
- Department of Surgery, University Medical Center Schleswig-Holstein, Campus Lübeck, Lübeck, Germany
- Andrew L. Warshaw, MD Institute for Pancreatic Cancer Research, Thier 623, Department of Surgery, Massachusetts General Hospital, Boston, MA, USA
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Lieberman-Cribbin W, Liu B, Leoncini E, Flores R, Taioli E. Temporal trends in centralization and racial disparities in utilization of high-volume hospitals for lung cancer surgery. Medicine (Baltimore) 2017; 96:e6573. [PMID: 28422849 PMCID: PMC5406065 DOI: 10.1097/md.0000000000006573] [Citation(s) in RCA: 19] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/30/2022] Open
Abstract
Racial disparities have been suggested in hospital utilization and outcome for lung cancer surgery, but the effect of hospital centralization on closing this gap is unknown. We hypothesized that centralization has increased the utilization of high- or very-high-volume (HV/VHV) hospitals, a proxy for access to high-quality care, over the study period independently from race.Inpatient records were extracted from the New York Statewide Planning and Research Cooperative System database (1995-2012) according to Clinical Modification of the International Classification of Diseases, 9th Revision diagnosis codes 162.* and 165.* and surgical procedure codes 32.2-32.6 (n = 31,931). Patients treated exclusively with surgery of black or white race with a valid zip code were included. Logistic models were performed to determine factors associated with utilization of HV/VHV or low- or very-low-volume (LV/VLV) hospitals; these models were subsequently stratified by race.The percentage of both black and white patients utilizing HV/VHV hospitals increased over the study period (+22.7% and 13.9%, respectively). The distance to the nearest HV/VHV hospital and patient-hospital distance were significantly lower in black compared to white patients, however, blacks were consistently less likely to use HV/VHV than whites (odds ratioadj: 0.26; 95% confidence interval: 0.23-0.29), and were significantly more likely to utilize urban, teaching, and lower volume hospitals than whites. Likelihood of HV/VHV utilization decreased with an increasing distance from a HV/VHV hospital, overall and separately for black and white patients.Although centralization has increased the utilization of HV/VHV for both black and white patients, racial differences in access and utilization of HV hospitals persisted.
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Affiliation(s)
- Wil Lieberman-Cribbin
- Department of Population Health Science and Policy and Institute for Translational Epidemiology, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY
| | - Bian Liu
- Department of Population Health Science and Policy and Institute for Translational Epidemiology, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY
| | - Emanuele Leoncini
- Institute of Public Health, Section of Hygiene, Università Cattolica del Sacro Cuore, Rome, Italy
| | - Raja Flores
- Department of Thoracic Surgery, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY
| | - Emanuela Taioli
- Department of Population Health Science and Policy and Institute for Translational Epidemiology, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY
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Rosenberg BL, Kellar JA, Labno A, Matheson DHM, Ringel M, VonAchen P, Lesser RI, Li Y, Dimick JB, Gawande AA, Larsson SH, Moses H. Quantifying Geographic Variation in Health Care Outcomes in the United States before and after Risk-Adjustment. PLoS One 2016; 11:e0166762. [PMID: 27973617 PMCID: PMC5156342 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0166762] [Citation(s) in RCA: 61] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/07/2016] [Accepted: 11/03/2016] [Indexed: 11/18/2022] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND Despite numerous studies of geographic variation in healthcare cost and utilization at the local, regional, and state levels across the U.S., a comprehensive characterization of geographic variation in outcomes has not been published. Our objective was to quantify variation in US health outcomes in an all-payer population before and after risk-adjustment. METHODS AND FINDINGS We used information from 16 independent data sources, including 22 million all-payer inpatient admissions from the Healthcare Cost and Utilization Project (which covers regions where 50% of the U.S. population lives) to analyze 24 inpatient mortality, inpatient safety, and prevention outcomes. We compared outcome variation at state, hospital referral region, hospital service area, county, and hospital levels. Risk-adjusted outcomes were calculated after adjusting for population factors, co-morbidities, and health system factors. Even after risk-adjustment, there exists large geographical variation in outcomes. The variation in healthcare outcomes exceeds the well publicized variation in US healthcare costs. On average, we observed a 2.1-fold difference in risk-adjusted mortality outcomes between top- and bottom-decile hospitals. For example, we observed a 2.3-fold difference for risk-adjusted acute myocardial infarction inpatient mortality. On average a 10.2-fold difference in risk-adjusted patient safety outcomes exists between top and bottom-decile hospitals, including an 18.3-fold difference for risk-adjusted Central Venous Catheter Bloodstream Infection rates. A 3.0-fold difference in prevention outcomes exists between top- and bottom-decile counties on average; including a 2.2-fold difference for risk-adjusted congestive heart failure admission rates. The population, co-morbidity, and health system factors accounted for a range of R2 between 18-64% of variability in mortality outcomes, 3-39% of variability in patient safety outcomes, and 22-70% of variability in prevention outcomes. CONCLUSION The amount of variability in health outcomes in the U.S. is large even after accounting for differences in population, co-morbidities, and health system factors. These findings suggest that: 1) additional examination of regional and local variation in risk-adjusted outcomes should be a priority; 2) assumptions of uniform hospital quality that underpin rationale for policy choices (such as narrow insurance networks or antitrust enforcement) should be challenged; and 3) there exists substantial opportunity for outcomes improvement in the US healthcare system.
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Affiliation(s)
- Barry L. Rosenberg
- The Boston Consulting Group, Boston, Massachusetts, United States of America
| | - Joshua A. Kellar
- The Boston Consulting Group, Boston, Massachusetts, United States of America
| | - Anna Labno
- The Boston Consulting Group, Boston, Massachusetts, United States of America
| | | | - Michael Ringel
- The Boston Consulting Group, Boston, Massachusetts, United States of America
| | - Paige VonAchen
- The Boston Consulting Group, Boston, Massachusetts, United States of America
| | - Richard I. Lesser
- The Boston Consulting Group, Boston, Massachusetts, United States of America
| | - Yue Li
- Department of Public Health Sciences, University of Rochester Medical Center, New York City, New York, United States of America
| | - Justin B. Dimick
- Center for Healthcare Outcomes and Policy, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, Michigan, United States of America
- Department of Surgery, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, Michigan, United States of America
| | - Atul A. Gawande
- Ariadne Labs At Brigham and Women’s Hospital and Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health, Boston, Massachusetts, United States of America
| | - Stefan H. Larsson
- The Boston Consulting Group, Boston, Massachusetts, United States of America
| | - Hamilton Moses
- The Alerion Institute and Alerion Advisors, LLC, North Garden, Virginia, United States of America
- Johns Hopkins School of Medicine, Baltimore, Maryland, United States of America
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Finkelman BS, French B, Kimmel SE. The prediction accuracy of dynamic mixed-effects models in clustered data. BioData Min 2016; 9:5. [PMID: 26819631 PMCID: PMC4728760 DOI: 10.1186/s13040-016-0084-6] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/02/2015] [Accepted: 01/18/2016] [Indexed: 02/06/2023] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND Clinical prediction models often fail to generalize in the context of clustered data, because most models fail to account for heterogeneity in outcome values and covariate effects across clusters. Furthermore, standard approaches for modeling clustered data, including generalized linear mixed-effects models, would not be expected to provide accurate predictions in novel clusters, because such predictions are typically based on the hypothetical mean cluster. We hypothesized that dynamic mixed-effects models, which incorporate data from previous predictions to refine the model for future predictions, would allow for cluster-specific predictions in novel clusters as the model is updated over time, thus improving overall model generalizability. RESULTS We quantified the potential gains in prediction accuracy from using a dynamic modeling strategy in a simulation study. Furthermore, because clinical prediction models in the context of clustered data often involve outcomes that are dependent on patient volume, we examined whether using dynamic mixed-effects models would be robust to misspecification of the volume-outcome relationship. Our results indicated that dynamic mixed-effects models led to substantial improvements in prediction accuracy in clustered populations over a broad range of conditions, and were uniformly superior to static models. In addition, dynamic mixed-effects models were particularly robust to misspecification of the volume-outcome relationship and to variation in the frequency of model updating. The extent of the improvement in prediction accuracy that was observed with dynamic mixed-effects models depended on the relative impact of fixed and random effects on the outcome as well as the degree of misspecification of model fixed effects. CONCLUSIONS Dynamic mixed-effects models led to substantial improvements in prediction model accuracy across a broad range of simulated conditions. Therefore, dynamic mixed-effects models could be a useful alternative to standard static models for improving the generalizability of clinical prediction models in the setting of clustered data, and, thus, well worth the logistical challenges that may accompany their implementation in practice.
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Affiliation(s)
- Brian S Finkelman
- Center for Clinical Epidemiology and Biostatistics, Department of Biostatistics and Epidemiology, Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA USA ; Center for Therapeutic Effectiveness Research, Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA USA
| | - Benjamin French
- Center for Clinical Epidemiology and Biostatistics, Department of Biostatistics and Epidemiology, Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA USA
| | - Stephen E Kimmel
- Center for Clinical Epidemiology and Biostatistics, Department of Biostatistics and Epidemiology, Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA USA ; Center for Therapeutic Effectiveness Research, Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA USA ; Department of Medicine, Cardiovascular Division, Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA USA
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