Managing blood thinner use is an important part of patient care before and after these gastrointestinal procedures, and poorly coordinated management can lead to procedures canceled at the last minute and other risks, researchers say.
For this JAMA Network Open paper, the researchers implemented a best practice alert for more than 2,000 patients, in which a referral for an elective GI endoscopy triggered a provider notification, recommending the provider refer the patient to the anticoagulation clinic.
"Overall, we saw a significant improvement in both patient and provider satisfaction with this new process as well as reductions in canceled procedures," says lead author Geoffrey Barnes, M.D., M.Sc., a cardiologist at the Michigan Medicine Frankel Cardiovascular Center.
Paper cited: "Assessment of a Best Practice Alert and Referral Process for Preprocedure Antithrombotic Medication Management for Patients Undergoing Gastrointestinal Endoscopic Procedures," JAMA Network Open. DOI: 10.1001/jamanetworkopen.2019.20548