The Development, Implementation and Evaluation of Clinical Pathways for Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD) in Saskatchewan

Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) has substantial economic and human costs. To minimize these costs high quality guidelines have been developed. However, development of guidelines alone rarely results in changes to practice. One method of integrating guidelines into professional practice is the use of clinical pathways (CPWs).

The investigators are working with local stakeholders to develop CPWs for COPD with the aims of improving quality of care and guideline adherence while reducing healthcare utilization. The CPWs will utilize several steps including: standardizing diagnostic training, implementing and unifying common components of chronic disease care, coordinating the provision of education and reconditioning programs, and ensuring disease specific care utilizes and delivers evidence-informed practices. In addition, the investigators have worked to identify evidence-informed strategies for the implementation of the CPWs. Efforts are underway to tailor these implementation strategies for the local context.

The investigators will conduct a three-year quantitative health services research project using an interrupted time series (ITS) design in the form of a multiple baseline approach with control groups. The CPW will be implemented in two Saskatchewan health regions (experimental groups) and two health regions will act as controls (control groups). The experimental and control groups will each contain one urban and one rural health region.

This project is expected to improve quality of life and reduce healthcare utilization. The project will also provide evidence on the effects of CPWs in both urban and rural settings. If the pathways are found effective the investigators will work with all stakeholders to implement similar CPWs for the remaining health regions in the province.