Prevention of Readmissions at Inflammatory Bowel Disease Centres of Excellence

Background: Hospital readmission rates are a key issue in health policy as they place a large burden on the healthcare system. Readmissions are a preventable source of health care expenditure and in some cases, represent an opportunity for quality improvement. Lack of standardization in hospital discharge processes, and deficiencies in the transition of care after discharge, predispose patients to an increased risk of illness, hospital utilization and healthcare costs. Previously identified issues in discharge planning include timely transmission of discharge summaries to primary care providers and lack of communication between providers and patients with respect to discharge medications and follow-up appointments.

Rationale: Various post-discharge interventions have been effective in reducing hospital readmission rates and increasing patient satisfaction. However, in patients with flares of Inflammatory Bowel Disease (IBD), there is limited evidence to suggest which processes of care are protective against readmissions. IBD patients are frequently hospitalized, with over 22% of patients hospitalized within the first 2 years of diagnosis. Moreover, readmission rates are high in the IBD population, with over 20% of patients readmitted within the same calendar year of their initial hospitalization. Alongside increased healthcare expenditure, hospitalizations in the IBD population are associated with a number of nosocomial complications including venous thromboembolism and infection.

Specific Aim: The primary aim of this study is to determine whether standardized IBD post-discharge pathway, involving regular follow-up with an advanced practice nurse and electronic monitoring through a web-based application, decreases the risk of IBD readmissions when compared to the usual standard of care.

Study Design: All IBD inpatients with a diagnosis of Ulcerative Colitis (UC) or Crohn's Disease (CD) will be approached to participate in this parallel group randomized control trial. Patients randomized to the control arm will be discharged with the usual post-discharge standard of care. Patients randomized to the intervention arm will receive the usual post-discharge standard of care, in addition to organised follow-up with an advance practice nurse and electronic monitoring through a web-based application.